Spotted: Carol Pollard taking a tour of Abbott manufacturing facility

During her dance career, Carol Pollard (pictured second from left) worked with celebrities like Sammy Davis Jr., Jimmy Durante, Jimmy Dean, Phil Ford and Mimi Hines. She performed in Vegas shows and had a role in the Broadway musical Funny Girl.

When she started slowing down and having a hard time breathing last year at the age of 77, she figured it was just her age catching up with her. Then her doctors thought it might be anxiety.

It turns out, she actually had mitral regurgitation (a leaky heart valve), a common heart condition that impacts more than 1 in 10 adults age 75 and older. It causes the heart to work harder to pump enough blood to the body, and left untreated, can lead to an irregular heartbeat or heart failure.

A minimally invasive procedure with Abbott’s MitraClip — a device that got its start in the Bay Area and is made in Menlo Park — fixed her heart valve without open-heart surgery.

Now the grandmother is able to take two-mile walks and lift weights, discovered a love for drawing, and is looking to get back on the dance floor.

Yesterday, Carol met the team who made her device at Abbott Cardiovascular Manufacturing Facility in Menlo Park and took a tour to see how it is made.