John Hunter (1728-93) and the earliest description of bicuspid aortic valves

摘要

John Hunter (1728-93) is considered one of the great luminaries of anatomy and surgery. He remains famous for being the first individual to describe a vast range of pathologies, treatments and anatomical discoveries. He is also acknowledged for his contribution to adult cardiology, including the first description of cardiac ventricular aneurysms in 1757. Further to these acclaims, we for the first time identify John Hunter's earliest description of bicuspid aortic valves. In 1764 he described: "a Man who... On examining the valves of the Aorta, I found that there had been two only, instead of three; and that one of them had a kind of fraenum or cross-bar, attaching its middle to the sides of the artery. These valves were very much diseased, became thick and stony, by which means they did not meet entirely, or by even edges. The left kidney had two Pelvises, and two Ureters, which entered the Bladder by two Orifices" [1 ].