One Hundred and Counting: Dr Dwight C. McGoon’s Enduring Legacy

Dr Dwight C. McGoon, a prolific surgeon at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, achieved an amazing feat during the early days of cardiac surgery. In 1965, he reported a series of 100 consecutive aortic valve replacements with no in-hospital mortality. As a pioneer in adult and congenital cardiac surgery, his other contributions included novel uses of left ventricular and biventricular extracardiac conduits and describing repairs for mitral regurgitation resulting from ruptured chordae, transposition of the great arteries, truncus arteriosus, pulmonary stenosis, and pulmonary atresia. More than 50 years later, Dr McGoon is still remembered for his technical prowess, innovation, mentorship, and humanism.