Minimally Invasive Heart Surgery:
Health Story

Aired on Lifetime Television
February 24 and April 6, 2008
Show 507

A six-armed robot helping doctors perform open heart surgery. Science fiction, you might say? It's happening now. Follow heart patient Leslie Lafayette as she undergoes the knife – and the machine. See her heart beating, literally, as surgeons use their skills, tiny cameras and the small pincers of daVinci, a robotic machine, to repair valves in Leslie's heart. It's all part of minimally invasive heart surgery, which uses newer techniques that make this remarkable operation easier on the patient's body. Smaller incisions help reduce the possibility of infection, while the gentler impact on the body shortens postoperative pain and recovery time. We'll also see how Leslie's doing four weeks after surgery.