Maureen Newman,  —

Novel research investigating the relationship between autoantibodies and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) may allow new therapies to be developed based on current treatments for autoimmune diseases. The laboratory of Steve Duncan, MD, at the University of Alabama at Birmingham Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine recently published a study…

As the supplier of the body’s blood, the heart must also supply its own blood to keep itself nourished and oxygenated. The heart’s blood supply comes from the coronary arteries, which receive oxygenated blood from the pulmonary veins. Normally, the heart receives enough oxygenated blood, but with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH)…

Targeting a mutation common to 15-40% of cases of idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) with a specific drug target may help cure heritable forms of PAH. A study from Dr. Nicholas W. Morrell’s laboratory at the University of Cambridge reversed the signs of PAH in mice treated with bone-morphogenetic protein…

Understanding the science behind chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) has come a long way since, originally, a diagnosis was made postmortem. Although it is commonly underdiagnosed and undertreated, CTEPH can be cured via pulmonary endarterectomy (PEA), a technique that dates back almost to the first diagnosis of CTEPH. “At the…

When exploring the origins of pulmonary arterial hypertension, researchers regard injuries to the endothelium of blood vessels as an important factor leading to the development of the disease, as remodeling in the pulmonary vessels can lead to increased pressure and resistance in the arteries. In order to address endothelium injury and create new…

As more scientific studies are conducted to understand pulmonary hypertension, it is becoming more apparent that pulmonary arterial smooth muscle cells (PASMCs) are important to the pathology of pulmonary hypertension. A group of researchers at the Pittsburgh Heart, Lung, Blood, and Vascular Medicine Institute recently reported on the advances in therapies…

Researchers in Brazil and the United Kingdom have identified another reason to get up and get moving. In the report titled “Voluntary Exercise Delays Heart Failure Onset in Rats with Pulmonary Artery Hypertension,” published in the American Journal of Physiology Heart and Circulatory Physiology, a…

Acute pulmonary arterial hypertension can result from metastatic cancer complications. Pulmonary tumor thrombotic microangiopathy (PTTM), which is one of these complications, occurs in 1.4% of patients who die of cancer, and death is due to right heart strain and cardiorespiratory arrest. Unfortunately, PTTM is difficult to diagnose in patients, as…

Two theories behind the pathogenesis of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) converge on the protein known as the master transcription factor forkhead box O1 (FoxO1). Leaders in the field of PAH research are excited about the notion that addressing master transcription factors may integrate the metabolic and inflammatory theories behind PAH,…

Patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) are at an increased risk for mortality due to concurrent pulmonary hypertension or interstitial lung disease. While pulmonary hypertension results in right-sided heart failure, interstitial lung disease results in extensive lung fibrosis. It may be possible to test for lung scarring using high resolution computed…

Representatives from Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals presented findings at the American Thoracic Society’s (ATS) 2015 International Conference that suggest pulmonary hypertension is more prevalent in patients with pulmonary embolisms than was previously thought. Although the rate may be at least twice as high as previously identified, many patients do not undergo the…

Bayer HealthCare will deliver six presentations at the ongoing American Thoracic Society (ATS) International Conference in Denver, Colorado. Five posters and one oral presentation will describe data concerning treatment of patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH). “At the American Thoracic Society…