Don's Profile

I am a 76 yr old linguist and triathlete. See my website which gives lots of details: https://people.uleth.ca/~frantz I have done at least 145 triathlons, but during the past few years I have been able to run less and less. I now find that I can't even walk fast without getting angina. During those five years I have had periodic echocardiograms that showed increasing aortic valve stenosis. The last echo, as well as my angiogram on 1 April 2010, showed the valve opening to be down to 1 square cm. (4.5 sq.cm is normal) I was referred to a surgeon in Calgary, but there was a delay in getting the info to him, and when I did hear from him I found I won't see him until July 15th. Add the estimated minimum of 3 months wait after that for surgery, and I am concerned about deterioration in my fitness and condition. So I am looking into having the procedure done elsewhere, despite the fact that I don't have medical insurance outside of Canada.