YOU ARE WATCHING WLKY NEWS. THIS IS HEART MONTH. GROUNDBREAKING TECHNOLOGY AT NORTON CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL IS HELPING SURGEONS GO INSIDE A CHILD’S HEART BEFORE EVER PICKING UP THE SCALPEL. IN TONIGHT’S PROJECT COMMUNITY STORY, JENNIFER BAILEYS EXPLAINS HOW THE TECHNOLOGY WAS INITIALLY CREATED FOR BRAIN SURGERY. BUT THAT ALL CHANGED JUST A FEW MONTHS AGO. SHE’S RAMBUNCTIOUS. SHE IS A DIVA. THROW IT. 18 MONTH OLD HARRIET ELZEY, WHO GOES BY HATTIE, DOESN’T LOOK LIKE A CHILD WHO ONCE FACED NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE ODDS BEFORE HATTIE AND HER TWIN WERE BORN, DOCTORS MADE A DEVASTATING DISCOVERY DURING MOM DAKOTA ELSE’S 20 WEEK ANATOMY SCAN, THEY FIRST FOUND OUT THAT HER STOMACH WAS ON THE WRONG SIDE OF HER BODY. AND THEN WITH THAT DIAGNOSIS USUALLY COMES A LOT OF CARDIOVASCULAR ISSUES. HATTIE WAS DIAGNOSED WITH HETEROTAXY SYNDROME, A RARE CONDITION WHERE ORGANS FORM IN THE WRONG PLACES OR POSITIONS, ALONG WITH MULTIPLE HEART DEFECTS. EACH ONE WE WOULD HAVE CONSIDERED, YOU KNOW, A SERIOUS HEART CONDITION. SO SHE HAD THREE DIFFERENT SERIOUS HEART CONDITIONS WITHIN ONE PATIENT. EACH CONDITION ALONE COULD REQUIRE SURGERY AND TOGETHER MADE HATTIE’S HEART ESPECIALLY DIFFICULT TO REPAIR. THAT’S WHERE A CUTTING EDGE THEATER COMES IN. NORTON CHILDREN’S IS ONE OF ONLY A FEW CHILDREN’S HOSPITALS NATIONWIDE USING IT FOR PEDIATRIC HEART PATIENTS, ADAPTING TECHNOLOGY ORIGINALLY DESIGNED FOR BRAIN SURGERY, IT CREATES A VERY DETAILED AND VERY FOCUSED 3D IMAGE OF THE HEART THAT WE CAN LOOK AT DIFFERENT ANGLES, ROTATE, FOCUS, ENLARGE AND LIKE EXAMINE IN A MUCH BETTER WAY THAN THE TRADITIONAL WAY OF DOING IT. THE TECHNOLOGY ALLOWS SURGEONS THE HEART, REHEARSING COMPLEX REPAIRS BEFORE THE REAL OPERATION SO YOU CAN ACTUALLY PUT ON VIRTUAL REALITY GOGGLES THAT WE’RE ALL FAMILIAR WITH, AND WALK INTO THE HEART AND GO INTO THE HEART, LOOK AT THE VALVES, SEE HOW THEY’RE PUT TOGETHER. RIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, SURGEONS PERFORMED AN INCREDIBLY COMPLEX REPAIR OF HATTIE’S HEART, A SURGERY THAT LASTED NEARLY SEVEN HOURS. CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE IS LIFELONG. SO IT’S YOU KNOW, SHE WASN’T CURED. SHE WASN’T FIXED. BUT THIS DEFINITELY GAVE HER A LOT OF A BETTER OUTLOOK. AND. A BETTER QUALITY OF LIFE, FOR SURE. TODAY, HATTIE IS HOME, THRIVING AND SHOWING THE WORLD WHAT’S POSSIBLE WHEN INNOVATION AND EXPERTISE COME TOGETHER. THANK YOU. DOESN’T FEEL BIG ENOUGH. YOU KNOW MY MY APPRECIATION. IT IT GOES BEYOND WORDS AND NORMAN SAYS TECHNOLOGY LIKE THIS IS FUNDED BY DONATIONS AND FUNDRAISING THROUGH THE NORTON CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL FOUNDATION. TO LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR PROJECT COMMUNITY SERIES, GO TO WLKY.COM AND CLICK ON THE COMMUNITY TAB JENNIFER BAILEYS WLKY NEWS. AND WITH ADVANCED SURGERY, MANY CHILDREN WITH THIS CONDITION SURVIVE INTO ADOLESCENCE AND ADULTHOOD, WITH SOME STUDIES