Pulmonary Hypertension Center

Pulmonary hypertension describes an abnormal elevation inside the blood vessels in the lungs.  High pressure inside the lung blood vessels is often the result of elevated resistance within these blood vessels.
 
As time passes, the blood vessels in the lung begin to change and may eventually become scarred and distorted.  This process has profound effects on the heart’s ability to sustain the circulation, initially with exercise, and ultimately at rest.  Symptoms of pulmonary hypertension can be non-specific and include:

• Shortness of breath
• Chest pain
• Fatigue
• Swelling
• Fainting

This problem with this resistance may be the end result of many different medical conditions, such as:

• Issues with elevated pressure with the left side of the heart (the side that pushes oxygenated blood to the many tissues of the body)
• Interstitial lung disease
• Inflammatory diseases such as scleroderma, lupus or rheumatoid arthritis
• Congenital heart disease
• Sleep apnea
• Obesity
• HIV
• Chronic thromboembolic disease (when blood clots go to the lungs)
• Chronic lung diseases such as COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
• Advanced liver disease

Because several diseases may lead to pulmonary hypertension, our physicians initially focus on defining the underlying cause.

Diagnostic Testing
We decipher the underlying process that led to pulmonary hypertension through a combination of non-invasive and, at times, invasive testing.  Tests such as:

• Blood work
• EKG
• Echocardiography
• Chest X-rays
• CT scan of the chest
• Pulmonary function tests
• V/Q scans (nuclear scans to evaluate blood flow to the lungs)
• Sleep studies
• Ultrasound
• Right heart catheterization with vasodilator testing

The results of these tests help our team of cardiologists and pulmonologists craft a multidisciplinary approach that uniquely addresses the underlying disease, as well as the problems with blood vessel resistance.  Our goal is to develop a collaborative relationship with our patients and their care-givers, to blunt the effects of this challenging disease.

Treatment for pulmonary hypertension
During the last several years, there has been an enormous expansion in the potential treatments for pulmonary hypertension.  Oral, inhaled, subcutaneous and continuous intravenous therapies promise to change the natural history of pulmonary hypertension, and provide patients with more freedom and more choices.  Our group currently offers all available treatments for pulmonary hypertension, and aims to match the therapy with the individual patient’s medical needs.