The Mysterious Human Heart

Filmed in high-definition and originally broadcast on PBS, filmmaker David Grubin's informative three-part series combines interviews with medical experts and surgeons, vivid computer-generated images of the heart's structure and function, and real-life stories of everyday people facing the challenges of life-threatening heart conditions. "Endlessly Beating" looks at the heart as a muscular pump—beating more than 100,000 times a day, and remaining remarkably efficient under nominal conditions. But when the heart fails (as it does in three case studies examined here), artificial hearts or heart transplants are required, both of which are explored in detail. "The Spark of Life" focuses on the electrical mechanisms that keep the heart beating, detailing what occurs when the heart's normal rhythms are disrupted or shut down. A wide range of treatments are profiled (with particular emphasis on portable and implantable defibrillators), as patients from New York to Brazil find their lives extended thanks to advancing technology. "The Silent Killer" zeroes in on atherosclerosis, the silent blockage of coronary arteries that is the leading cause of cardiac arrest, looking at risk factors (and prevention) and the prospects for long-term survival of those with heart disease. A valuable primer on an important subject, this is highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (J. Shannon)