The apparatus was used recently to correct a ‘short circuit’ in a heart that was beating too fast – with the surgeon not even in the room. The procedure involved careful steering of a catheter via veins from the groin to the heart, using X-ray images as a guide. Normally, surgeons operate at the bedside and have to shield themselves from the radiation by wearing heavy lead aprons. Now, the new gadget can be attached to the bed and the surgeon can work in a separate room via images on a screen. More