Magdalena Kegel,  —

Bayer will present new data from two different studies of Adempas (riociguat) for pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) at the American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST) 2016 Annual Meeting Oct. 22-26 in Los Angeles. One of the presentations will be held during the Late-Breaking Abstracts session of the meeting. Bayer will also…

Early treatment with Tracleer (bosentan) may delay the development of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in people with scleroderma, according to a study that compared patients who had never used this medicine with those taking it  for digital ulcers. If confirmed in other studies, the finding has the potential to radically change the prognosis for numerous…

Reata Pharmaceuticals has enrolled the first patient in its Phase 3 CATALYST trial (NCT02657356), exploring the potential benefits of bardoxolone methyl in people with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) linked to connective tissue disease. The trial is continuing to recruit participants. The company also reported that data from the ongoing Phase 2 LARIAT…

A case report of pulmonary hypertension in a patient with heterotaxy syndrome — a condition where organs in the chest or abdomen are in the wrong position — highlights the need for physicians to be aware of the serious consequences that increased lung blood pressure can have in this patient group.

Research into, and care of, patients with both congenital heart disease and pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) need to be optimized so that advances in PAH management and care can also benefit these patients, two PAH experts argue. George Giannakoulas, MD, PhD, at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece, and…

A molecule called PHD2 in the cells lining blood vessels in the lungs protects mice from the blood vessel remodeling leading to pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), as removal of the factor triggered numerous changes linked to the condition. The findings suggest that PHD2 is a factor that is downstream of…

Both patients newly diagnosed with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and animal models of the disease show increased activity of a molecular pathway, known as NNMT-MNA (Nicotinamide N-methyltransferase and 1-methylnicotinamide), which is involved in metabolic and inflammatory reactions. The researchers behind the study, “Activation of the nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT)-1-methylnicotinamide (MNA) pathway in…

Patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) who fail to benefit from treatment with phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitors (PDE5i) may safely switch to Adempas (riociguat), according to the final results of a clinical trial, which showed that Adempas improved their health. The results were presented at the European Respiratory Society (ERS) International…

A clinical trial exploring if Rituxan (rituximab) is effective in managing pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in patients with scleroderma is now recruiting participants in numerous locations across the U.S. Rituxan is an immunotherapy drug in the form of an antibody against the CD20 molecule, found on the surface of certain…

Increased levels of the blood plasma protein endothelin-1 are linked to pulmonary hypertension in African-Americans, according to a large study exploring heart disease. The findings, presented in the journal JAMA Cardiology in the study titled “Association of Elevated Plasma Endothelin-1 Levels With Pulmonary Hypertension, Mortality, and Heart Failure…

Further evidence that the oral drug Orenitram (treprostinil) might be a viable option to Remodulin, the injected version of the drug, for lower risk pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) patients was recently published by researchers at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. The study, “Transition from parenteral to oral treprostinil in…

Patients with pulmonary hypertension (PH) have much higher levels of the blood vessel factor TSP-1 in their blood, with levels coinciding with the type and severity of the disease. Since the factor is known to interact with several PH treatment targets, the study, titled “The role of circulating…