A two-stage or component-based valve prosthesis that can be quickly and easilyimplanted during a surgical procedure is provided. The prosthetic valvecomprises a support structure that is deployed at a treatment site. Theprosthetic valve further comprises a valve member configured to be quicklyconnected to the support structure. The support structure may take the form ofa stent that is expanded at the site of a native valve. If desired, the nativeleaflets may remain and the stent may be used to hold the native valve open.In this case, the stent may be balloon expandable and configured to resist thepowerful recoil force of the native leaflets. The support structure isprovided with a coupling means for attachment to the valve member, therebyfixing the position of the valve member in the body. The valve member may be anon- expandable type, or may be expandable from a compressed state to anexpanded state. The system is particularly suited for rapid deployment ofheart valves in a conventional open-heart surgical environment.
