New PBS Series: The Mysterious Human Heart

I had the privilege of previewing the new 3-program series produced for PBS, "The Mysterious Human Heart," which will premiere on October 15 and October 22 at 9 PM Eastern. I urge everyone to watch. All three programs are beautifully produced, moving and informative. But the incredible graphics alone are worth your time - the images here truly "tell the story" of the heart. If graphics like this existed 35 years ago, I could have skipped 6 months of medical school.

The first hour, entitled "Endlessly Beating," is about the heart as a muscle. It follows the story of three compelling patients who are battling end-stage heart failure - that is, the "pumping function" of their hearts has weakened dangerously. These three individuals have similar diseases, but their encounters with the cutting edge of medical therapy, as their doctors struggle to keep them alive, are quite different from one another, and their stories cover nearly the spectrum of what modern medicine can offer to such patients.

The second hour is called "The Spark of Life," and tells the stories of three patients with various heart rhythm disturbances. It graphically demonstrates how modern implantable pacemakers and defibrillators are keeping hundreds of thousands of people alive and healthy, who would have died just a few years ago. It also shows how modern ablation techniques can restore some people who are disabled by cardiac arrhythmias back to normal health.

The third hour of this series, "The Silent Killer," focuses on coronary artery disease. It shows the obligatory modern therapies for this common killer of course, but refreshingly focuses on how vitally important lifestyle choices are in preventing - and in arresting the progression of - coronary artery disease.

This series effectively demonstrates cutting edge medical care for common cardiac conditions. Many patients or families of patients who have recently experienced significant cardiac disease - whether they have health insurance or not - will fail to recognize the treatments being offered to the patients presented here. Nonetheless, this series shows what optimal medical care should look like today for many patients with common cardiac problems. Anyone watching these programs will understand why it is vital for patients to educate themselves on ALL the alternatives for treating any medical conditions they might have. If they wait for their doctors to bring up all the options they may find they've waited too long. (Such omissions are increasingly built-in by central authorities that not only strive to limit doctors to average no more than 7.5 minutes per patient visit, but also - under such initiatives as Pay for Performance - attempt to script the content of those brief encounters.) If you have significant heart failure, cardiac arrhythmias, or coronary artery disease and your doctor hasn't at least mentioned to you some of the therapeutic options that you see in these programs, it's time to pick up the phone.

"The Mysterious Human Heart" will doubtlessly become recognized as one of the most impactful medical documentaries ever produced - and almost certainly the best that has ever been produced on heart disease. I hope everyone will make the time to watch this remarkable series of programs.