| 1628 | William Harvey, an English Physician, first describes blood circulation. |
| 1706 | Raymond de Vieussens, a French anatomy professor, first describes the structure of the heart's chambers and vessels. |
| 1733 | Stephen Hales, an English clergyman and scientist, first measures blood pressure. |
| 1816 | Rene T. H. Laennec, a French physician, invents the stethoscope. |
| 1903 | Willem Einthoven, a Dutch physiologist, develops the electrocardiograph. |
| 1912 | James B. Herrick, an American physician, first describes heart disease resulting from hardening of the arteries. |
| 1938 | Robert E. Gross, an American surgeon, performs first heart surgery. |
| 1951 | Charles Hufnagel, an American surgeon, develops a plastic valve to repair an aortic valve. |
| 1952 | F. John Lewis, an American surgeon, performs first successful open heart surgery. |
| 1953 | John H. Gibbon, an American surgeon, first uses a mechanical heart and blood purifier. |
| 1961 | J. R. Jude, an American cardiologist, leads a team performing the first external cardiac massage to restart a heart. |
| 1965 | Michael DeBakey and Adrian Kantrowitz, American surgeons, implant mechanical devices to help a diseased heart. |
| 1967 | Christiaan Barnard, a South African surgeon, performs the first whole heart transplant from one person to another. |
| 1982 | Willem DeVries, an American surgeon, implants a permanent artificial heart, designed by Robert Jarvik, an American physician, into a patient. |