The dawn of open heart surgery: an overview of the symposium that celebrated the 50th anniversary of controlled cross circulation.

At the 50th Anniversary of Open Heart Surgery symposium sponsored by the Lillehei Heart Institute of the University of Minnesota in October 2004, the following pioneers in open heart surgery development presented papers of historical interest: Drs. Peter Agre, Robert W. Anderson, William Baumgartner, Alain Carpentier, Aldo Casteneda, Randolph Chitwood, Jr., Denton Cooley, Fred Crawford, Michael DeBakey, Richard DeWall, Vincent Gott, Claude Lenfant, Floyd Loop, James Holler, Glen Nelson, Norman Shumway, Manny Villafana, Richard Weisel, and Sir Magdi Yacoub.