Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a haemodynamic and pathophysiological condition defined as increase in mean pulmonary arterial pressure ≥ 25 mmHg at rest as assessed by right heart catheterization (RHC). It can be due to a primary elevation of pressure in the pulmonary arterial system alone (pulmonary arterial hypertension), or secondary to elevations of pressure in the pulmonary venous and capi...

There is conclusive evidence that obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS) influences right heart haemodynamics and can also induce pulmonary hypertension. It is not known, however, whether right ventricular dysfunction can occur in patients with OSAS in the absence of lung disease. We studied 107 patients (94 males, 13 females, mean age 55 +/- 11 yrs) with polysomnographically verified OSAS in...

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a complex condition defined by progressive airflow limitation in response to noxious stimuli, inflammation, and vascular changes. COPD exacerbations are critical events in the natural history of the disease, accounting for the majority of disease burden, cost, and mortality. Pulmonary vascular disease is an important risk factor for disease progre...

Our case illustrates a patient who suffered a pulmonary artery rupture despite previous total artificial heart implantation and replacement with orthotopic heart transplant. Pulmonary artery rupture during or following cardiac surgery has been reported to occur due to both pulmonary artery catheter use and surgical technique. Our case is the first to demonstrate the occurrence of this complicat...

Pulmonary hypertension in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. J.A. Barberà, V.I. Peinado, S. Santos. #ERS Journals Ltd 2003. ABSTRACT: Pulmonary hypertension is a common complication of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Its presence is associated with shorter survival and worse clinical evolution. In COPD, pulmonary hypertension tends to be of moderate severity and progresses slo...

An irreversible change of the pulmonary perfusion was observed in a series of 100 chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients studied with a pulmonary artery perfusion scan (PAPS). This perfusion involvement was greater in patients in whom the major respiratory component was pulmonary emphysema as opposed to either chronic bronchitis or bronchial asthma. A statistically significant correlati...

Variation in pulmonary artery pressure has important consequences for the interpretation of isolated pressure measurements in patients with chronic heart failure. To investigate the nature of diurnal variation in pulmonary artery pressure in chronic heart failure, eight angina-free men (aged 50-72 years) with treated chronic heart failure caused by ischaemic heart disease underwent continuous a...

Changes in pulmonary artery pressure within an obstructive apnoea and elevations of transmural pulmonary artery pressure (Ppa,tm) towards the end of apnoea are well known. The purpose of our study was to examine which factors contribute to the increase of Ppa,tm in an apnoea. In addition, the time course of Ppa,tm and associated factors during a sleep study was investigated. We analysed the ass...