Uhart gets her pumper fixed

Kansas' Natalie Uhart has not had it easy. Initially a player for Long Beach State, she had many injury problems and eventually transferred back closer to home, where she promptly sat out all of last season because of knee surgery.

So this year, things were going great. She was healthy, playing, and then against Michigan State she was dizzy and weak. Doctors discovered, well, how do I put this: they discovered a hole in her heart. No big deal. Just a hole, in the most important organ of the body. (Arguably, brain freaks. Don't send letters.)

You heard me. A hole...in her heart. It's called a patent foramen ovale, which is a birth defect of sorts, a hole in the membrane dividing the two upper chambers of the heart.

CRIPES.

Now, I did a little reading, and it turns out that the surgery for this can be done WITH LOCAL ANESTHETIC. I'm not sure if that's what they did in Uhart's case, but they basically use catheters and stick two umbrella-looking things a little bigger than a dime...IN THE HEART.

Uhart had the surgery September 12, and was cleared to play for last night's match. So in case you're wondering, that's 15 days after a procedure on her heart, she's back on the court.

...freakin' technology, huh. Why again aren't we traveling in air locks yet?