Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy - Patient Stories

Local history teacher, Chris Spaid is back in the classroom after a complex heart condition gave him a scare and ultimately caused him to miss time with his students. Diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), Mr. Spaid’s cardiologist recommended Dr. Libin Wang, an expert in the field. Dr. Wang's first order of business was to implant a defibrillator to monitor and prevent abnormal heart beats that could potentially cause great harm.

A very short time after Chris became light headed while walking his young daughter to school. He was unable to fully catch his breath and had no idea what the issue was.Thankfully his newly implanted defibrillator prevented further strain on his heart and went off a total of four times to restore the normal rhythm of his heart. 

“I always tell Dr. Wang he saved my life,” says Chris.

The impact his treatment had on Mr. Spaid meant a lot to Dr. Wang as he had lost a favorite teacher of his growing up and was glad he was able to reunite Chris with his students permanently.