Back in the 1970s, Delos “Toby” Cosgrove, a heart surgeon, was feeling frustrated. At that time, the field of open heart surgery was still in its infancy, and surgeons used a rigid ring to help restore the shape of a heart valve after surgery. Unfortunately, this ring did not work particularly well because it was too rigid to move with the human tissue. And although specialist medical labs and surgeons in operating theatres had sought to develop a better solution, nobody had found one that worked.
20世紀70年代,心臟外科手術醫生迪洛斯•託比•科斯格羅夫(Delos "Toby" Cosgrove)感到很沮喪。當時,開心手術領域還處於起步階段,外科醫生在進行手術後使用一個剛性的環來幫助恢復心臟瓣膜的形狀。不幸的是,由於這種環質地太硬,無法和人體組織同步移動,效果不是很好。儘管專業醫學實驗室以及奮戰在手術室的外科醫生都在尋找更好的解決辦法,但沒有人找到一種可行辦法。