Michael Slota (1958-2018) helped invent the Rotablator in the 1980s. Mike was originally a machinist from the east coast where he worked as a military contractor designing missiles. He came out to Seattle where he worked at Heart Technology in Bellevue and he met University of Washington professor and inventor Dr. David Auth. Mike worked under the UW professor to engineer the Rotablator and is listed jointly on a handful of patents that were filed with Auth as the primary inventor. The Rotablator was named as such because it ablates. Calcium buildup is a growing problem in the treatment of coronary artery disease. The Rotablator is used like a dental drill and has a diamond tipped burr on the end of a catheter that serves to break up and dislodge blockage. The tiny unit is inserted into the body through an artery in the patient's leg and a guide wire steers the bit through the body to the desired destination. It was critical to design a device that worked without electricity in order to avoid electromagnetic confilcts within the body during surgery. There was an effort to stress the "a" in Rota-A-blator so that the tool and the process would not be mistaken for the more familiar Rot-o-rooter.