On permanent patency of the mouth of the aorta, or inadequacy of the aortic valves.

In his wonderfully clear account of aortic insufficiency, Corrigan described the “water-hammer pulse” now commonly known as “Corrigan’s pulse.” He recognized that the hypertrophy of the heart present in this condition is compensatory and not a disease. Corrigan was the last of the famous band forming the “Irish School of Medicine” in the 19th century. Reprinted in Med. Classics, 1937, 1, 703-27.