Dr. Albert Starr, a surgeon from Oregon who changed cardiovascular medicine and co-invented the first effective mechanical heart valve, passed away on December 11 at the age of 98. With the creation of the Starr-Edwards valve, which has since saved hundreds of thousands of lives worldwide, his work signaled a sea change in cardiovascular care.
According to his relatives, difficulties from a recent surgery were the cause.
Albert Starr was the epitome of what it meant to be a doctor, an inventor, and a teacher. According to Steve Stadum, interim president of Oregon Health and Science University, he has impacted the lives of hundreds of thousands of patients and their families throughout the years with his dedication. By collaborating with like-minded scientists, surgeons, and medical device engineers worldwide to refine and improve his work and find new and better ways to heal hearts, Dr. Starr continued to revolutionize the field even after co-inventing and implanting the first artificial heart valve in history.
Globally, the valve has been incorporated into over 800,000 implants. Top medical awards, such as the 2015 Grand Prix Scientifique and the 2007 Lasker Award, were given to Starr for his efforts. Leading cardiac surgery programs at OHSU and Providence Health, he conducted the first heart transplant in Oregon in 1985 and worked to improve cardiac care throughout his career.
Joseph Goldstein, the head of the scientific selection committee, emphasized the significant changes that have occurred since Starr’s groundbreaking work when he was given the Lasker Award in 2007: Heart valve replacement surgery was nonexistent fifty years ago. It is currently among the most successful and the second most common heart surgery performed in the US.
Over the course of six decades, Starr worked in cardiovascular surgery. Up until his passing, he continued to be involved in training and research while holding the position of professor emeritus at the OHSU Knight Cardiovascular Institute.
According to Dr. Joaquin Cigarroa, professor of cardiovascular medicine at the OHSU School of Medicine and head of the OHSU Knight Cardiovascular Institute, Dr. Starr revolutionized the way that cardiovascular illness is treated. People all throughout the world now live longer and with greater quality of life thanks to the development of the artificial heart valve.
Starr, who was born in Brooklyn on June 1, 1926, supported himself as a jazz pianist while attending Columbia College to study liberal arts. In 1949, he graduated from Columbia’s College of Physicians and Surgeons with a medical degree. Before returning to finish his thoracic surgery residency, Starr gained experience at a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital unit while serving as a battalion surgeon in Korea.
The University of Oregon Medical School (now OHSU) hired Starr in 1957 to start the state’s first program for open heart surgery. In order to cure end-stage mitral valve illness, he and retired engineer M. Lowell Edwards created the Starr-Edwards valve around 1960. In the same year, Starr and associates successfully replaced the first prosthetic heart valve in history.
Chiara Profenna discusses faith, religion, and cultural ties. You may contact her at [email protected] or @chiara-profenna on BlueSky, or 503-221-4327.
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