ABSTRACT
In 1925 Sir Henry Souttar reported the first mitral commissurotomy in the British Medical Journal. He wrote that the heart should be as amenable to surgery as any other organ. He saw the main problem as being maintenance of blood flow, particularly to the brain, while surgery was being performed. The first real advances occurred in the late 1940s and early 1950s, driven by surgeons who had gained confidence and experience under the pressures and opportunities provided by war, followed by the development of cardiopulmonary bypass in the mid-1950s. Recently, the well-being and lifespan of patients with congenital, valvular and degenerative heart disease has improved drastically due to the advances in the range, complexity and technical expertise in cardiac surgery
