A nine-month-old baby was born with a fatal heart defect in China. Suffering from a rare condition which was extremely difficult to repair, the doctors were concerned about performing the delicate surgery. The medical team decided to build a full-sized model of the infant’s heart with  a 3-D printer in order to pre-plan and practice the risky and complex surgery. Thanks in part to the accuracy the 3-D model enabled them to have, the doctors were successful and the little boy is expected to survive with few lasting effects.