Three-dimensional bioprinting: new horizon for cardiac surgery

Since its inception in 1896, cardiac surgery has evolved into a very successful speciality with the creation of new treatment options for previously untreatable diseases. The establishment of these new treatments drove the invention and development of new technology (e.g. the heart–lung machine), novel surgical materials and devices (e.g. suture material, grafts, mechanical and biological valves), as well as the introduction of new medications (e.g. heparin and cyclosporine), and the development of new surgical techniques by pioneering surgeons (e.g. cross-circulation, aortic surgery and heart transplantation). Beginning with the first successful suture of a laceration of the heart in 1896, furtheradvances followed, encompassing many fields and providing management solutions for hitherto unmanageable cardiovascular diseases. Landmark innovations include: