Patricia Inácio, PhD, science writer —

Adcirca (tadalafil) showed an acceptable safety profile and effectiveness in a real-world clinical cohort of pediatric patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in Japan. The study, “Safety and effectiveness of tadalafil in pediatric patients with pulmonary arterial…

Pulmonary hypertension patients who receive prostacyclin for a long time are at higher risk of developing cardiovascular complications after a lung transplant, a Japanese study reports. The research, published in the International Heart Journal, was titled “High Frequency of Acute Adverse Cardiovascular Events After Lung Transplantation in Patients…

The average systemic sclerosis (SSc) patient burdened with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) lives only four years after diagnosis, finds an Australian study,  “Survival and quality of life in incident systemic sclerosis-related pulmonary arterial hypertension,” that appeared in the journal Arthritis Research & Therapy. PAH is a serious…

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) patients who fail to respond completely to Adcirca (tadalafil) or Viagra (sildenafil) benefit from Letairis (ambrisentan) as an add-on therapy, according to a study. The research, “Clinical and hemodynamic improvements after adding ambrisentan to background PDE5i therapy in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension exhibiting a…

Letairis (ambrisentan) is a safe pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) treatment, according to a  confirmation of the clinical trial findings that led to its approval in Europe. European regulators ordered the study to be on the safe side because of the trials’ small patient sample size. In addition to confirming oral…

An imaging technique called optical coherence tomography (OCT) can effectively determine abnormalities in the lung vasculature of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc), a study shows. The study, “Optical coherence tomography evaluation of pulmonary arterial vasculopathy in Systemic Sclerosis,” appeared in the journal Scientific…

A small group of stem cells may help repair the lungs of those with pulmonary hypertension (PH), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and other lung conditions, according to a study. The body may recruit very small embryonic-like stem cells (VSELs) from bone marrow to the bloodstream so they can reach areas…

Letairis (ambrisentan) was the most efficient, robust therapeutic among endothelin receptor antagonists (ERAs) to treat pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), according to a study that compared the drug to three other therapies: Thelin (sitaxsentan), Tracleer (bosentan) and Opsumit (macitentan). The study, “Comparative efficacy and acceptability of endothelin receptor antagonists for…

The approved multiple-sclerosis treatment Tecfidera was seen to improve pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and inhibit lung fibrosis in mice by targeting multiple signaling pathways in a recent study. The research, “Dimethyl Fumarate ameliorates pulmonary arterial hypertension and lung fibrosis by targeting multiple pathways,” was published in the journal…

A cohort study with Chinese patients identified systemic sclerosis (SSc) as the key underlying disease that significantly worsens the clinical outcomes of patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). The study “Clinical characteristics and survival of pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with three major connective tissue diseases: A cohort study in…

A case report of a pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) patient who used an implanted hemodynamic monitor illustrates that improvements in pulmonary hemodynamics and right ventricle afterload with a “simple therapy” like oral iron supplements are both possible and measurable. The study, “Hemodynamic response to treatment of iron deficiency anemia in pulmonary arterial hypertension:…

Sildenafil appears to treat pulmonary hypertension (PH) by reducing the recruitment of bone marrow (BM)-derived progenitor cells, cells now being seen as potential key drivers of lung remodeling and inflammation in diseases that include PH. The study, “Sildenafil attenuates hypoxic pulmonary remodelling by inhibiting bone marrow progenitor cells,” was published in the…