News

PH Screening Can Be Given Only to Premature Babies with Risk Factors, Study Suggests

Researchers suggest that routine echocardiographic (ECG) screening for pulmonary hypertension (PH) in premature infants might only be needed if certain risk factors are evident. While the proposed approach would identify most children affected and be of help to hospitals, researchers acknowledge that lung hypertension might go undetected in some babies. The change is estimated to…

New Study Supports Treatment of Childhood PH with PDE-5 Inhibitors

Infants, newborns and children with pulmonary hypertension (PH) can be safely and effectively treated with phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE-5) inhibitors, according to a new study. The review study, “Pulmonary Hypertension Therapy and a Systematic Review of Efficacy and Safety of PDE-5 Inhibitors,” appeared in the journal Pediatrics. PDE-5 inhibitors such…

Age and Poorer Oxygen-Carbon Monoxide Exchange May Lessen Survival in PAH Patients with Systemic Sclerosis

Older age and abnormal oxygen-carbon monoxide blood levels may lead to poorer survival in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) and pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), compared to patients with idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (IPAH), a new study reports. The study, “Idiopathic And Systemic Sclerosis Associated Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension: A Comparison Of…

British Venture Apollo Funds Drug Discovery Program for PAH Treatment

Apollo Therapeutics has approved £8.5 million ($10.6 million) to fund four projects, including a small and large molecule discovery program to treat pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Professors Martin Wilkins and Lan Zhao of Imperial College London‘s Department of Medicine will head the PAH program. Both have previously identified a gene called…

Proteasome Inhibitors for Treating Cancer May Also Benefit PAH Patients

The rapid growth of smooth muscle cells in pulmonary arteries causes vasoconstriction and pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Now, researchers found that the same drugs that inhibit cancer cell growth may also be effective in treating PAH. The study, “Inhibition of ubiquitin proteasome function prevents monocrotaline-induced pulmonary arterial…

Low Levels of Bad Cholesterol Associated with Increased Mortality in PAH, Study Suggests

Patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) have low levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) – or “bad cholesterol” – which is associated with an increased mortality risk, according to a new study. PAH treatment may increase LDL-C levels. The study, “Low-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol And Survival In Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension,”…

Adempas Improves PAH Patients’ Hemodynamic Parameters, Study Shows

The medication Adempas (riociguat) effectively improves several hemodynamic parameters in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), according to the Phase 3 PATENT-1 clinical trial. Results showed that the drug improved these parameters — which included pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR), right atrial pressure (RAP) and cardiac index — not only in PAH…