CALCIFIC AORTIC-VALVE STENOSIS AND THE CONGENITALLY BICUSPID AORTIC-VALVE - DID OSLER MISS THE LINK

William Osler presented an excellent pathological description with som e clinical correlations of the congenitally bicuspid aortic valve in 1 886. He did not describe the syndrome of bicuspic aortic valve with ca lcification and stenosis. This brief essay emphasizes the effect of ag e as essential to the develpment of calcification and stenosis. Osler' s patients died young, frequently from endocarditis. Age continues as an important element in aortic stenosis and cardiovascular disease as calcific stenosis of the normal tricuspid has become a common clinical problem.