PARIS, June 3, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --
Edwards Lifesciences Corporation (NYSE: EW), the global leader
in the science of heart valves and hemodynamic monitoring, today
congratulated trusted Edwards partner Dr. Albert Starr on receiving the 2015 Institut de
France's Grand Prix Scientifique
in a Paris awards ceremony.
The Grand Prix is one of the largest prizes for scientific
accomplishment and is considered the world's most prestigious prize
for cardiovascular research. The Institut's board awarded Starr the
Grand Prix in recognition of research that led to the world's first
successful artificial mitral valve implant in 1960. In the last 55
years, millions of patients around the world have benefitted from
the emergence of the field of heart valve replacement and the many
technological advances that followed.
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"Dr. Starr's work was groundbreaking in enabling treatment for
patients with heart valve disease and this prestigious recognition
pays tribute to his significant career in advancing the practice of
medicine," said Michael A.
Mussallem, Edwards' chairman and CEO. "As a young clinician,
Starr's recommendation to focus on the heart's valves rather than
the whole heart was a key decision, and led to the incredible
partnership between clinicians and inventors that continues at
Edwards today. Dr. Starr's entrepreneurial spirit, combined with a
strong work ethic, clinical knowledge and dedication to patients
continues to inspire us all."
In 1960, Starr performed the world's first successful artificial
mitral valve implant in Oregon on
a 52-year-old man with end-stage mitral valve disease. That same
year, Miles Lowell Edwards
incorporated Edwards Laboratories to manufacture and market the
Starr-Edwards valve. The idea of replacing a heart valve was a
novel concept, and it helped set the stage for the development of
bioengineered tissue heart valves and more recent approaches to
delivering bioengineered aortic valves through a catheter.
Dr. Starr serves as distinguished professor of cardiovascular
medicine at the Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU)
School of Medicine and special adviser to the School's dean and
president. He is also chairman of the OHSU Knight Cardiovascular
Institute, which aims to bring clinicians and researchers together
to translate laboratory discoveries into new and better treatments
for cardiovascular disease. In 2007, Dr. Starr received the
Albert Lasker Award for Clinical
Medical Research, which honors the contributions of scientists,
physicians, and public servants who have made major advances in the
understanding, diagnosis, treatment, cure, and prevention of human
disease.
About Edwards Lifesciences
Edwards Lifesciences is the global leader in the science of
heart valves and hemodynamic monitoring. Driven by a passion
to help patients, the company partners with clinicians to develop
innovative technologies in the areas of structural heart disease
and critical care monitoring, enabling them to save and enhance
lives. Additional company information can be found at
http://www.edwards.com. Edwards, Edwards Lifesciences and the
stylized E logo are trademarks of Edwards Lifesciences
Corporation.
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