As a quick refresher, remember that Pulmonary Hypertension is broadly divided into five groups: Group 1: Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension Group 2: PH due to left heart disease and valvular heart disease Group 3: PH due to chronic lung disease (pulmonary fibrosis or emphysema) Group 4: PH due to chronic blood clots Group 5: PH due to various miscellaneous … [Read more...]
A New Approach to Treating Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension
Historic Treatment of Pulmonary Hypertension For 30 years the focus of treating PAH has been finding medications that dilate (or relax) the pulmonary arteries. This approach has served patients well. The prognosis for patients diagnosed today with PAH is very different from 30 years ago. Today patients can expect to take usually two if … [Read more...]
Scleroderma: Screening for Pulmonary Hypertension
Co-Authored By: Dr. Akshay Muralidhar Scleroderma is part of a special group of diseases called connective tissue diseases. This group of diseases includes lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, mixed connective tissue disease and many others. A key feature of these diseases is that the disease may involve multiple parts of their body including skin, joints, … [Read more...]
Salt, the Hidden Enemy
Salt is necessary for life. Without any salt our bodies are unable to work properly. However, in modern society the pendulum has swung very far towards excessive salt in our diet. As the world’s population has shifted from a rural setting towards cities, our diets have changed dramatically. Prepared foods and processed foods now occupy a large part of … [Read more...]
Is My Pulmonary Hypertension Doctor an Expert?
A 25-year old woman develops slowly progressive shortness of breath. After two years of wrong turns in her health care she eventually gets an echocardiogram that suggests pulmonary hypertension. She has a right heart catheterization that confirms severe PAH. She is referred to a local pulmonologist who starts her on one oral … [Read more...]
