News

Any newly-diagnosed pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) patient could probably testify to the hardships of having the disease, and new research provides concrete evidence of a substantial burden. More than half of these patients are hospitalized within three years of their diagnosis. Lead author Charles Burger, MD, from the Mayo…

Forced vital capacity, or FVC, is defined as the amount of air that can be forcibly exhaled from the lungs after taking the deepest breath possible. Patients suffering from systemic sclerosis, or scleroderma (a chronic systemic autoimmune disease) often undergo this type of spirometry testing to assess their status of…

A team of over twenty researchers recently found that patients with systemic sclerosis are at high risk to develop pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). The study, published in the Seminars in Arthritis & Rheumatism, set out to understand the natural history of pulmonary hypertension (PH) in systemic sclerosis (Ssc),…

Reata Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a privately held company located in Irving, Texas aiming to translate innovative research into breakthrough medicines for difficult-to-treat diseases that have significant unmet needs. Their approach specifically involves developing a novel class of drugs with potent transcriptional activity, called antioxidant inflammation modulators (AIMs), which can…

Putting an end to one familial case of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) without a known cause, a recent study published in New England Journal of Medicine investigated the mutation responsible for one family’s idiopathic PAH. Lead authors Lijang Ma, MD, PhD, and Danilo Roman-Campos, PhD, principal investigator…

In contrast to the typical image of heart patients running on treadmills and being hooked up to diagnostic machines while a doctor monitors their heart rate and oxygen consumption, a group of idiopathic pulmonary arterial heart (IPAH) patients cycled in a research study while being evaluated for blood pressure,…

Patients with pulmonary hypertension secondary to scleroderma (also known as systemic sclerosis) may not be properly assessed for interstitial lung disease through forced vital capacity (FVC) alone, according to Dr. Elizabeth Volkmann, of the University of California, Los Angeles. Dr. Volkmann, a rheumatologist, spoke at the annual European Congress…

Although pulmonary hypertension and chronic lung disease are usually associated with adults, some cases develop in infancy. Dina Ferdman, MD, from Columbia University Medical Center, is finding a way to treat infant patients, who were premature and have severe pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and chronic lung disease, using…

Ventripoint Diagnostics‘ VMS, a new heart visualization system for cardiac MRI and 3D ultrasounds, was recently deemed an accurate method by a German group of researchers, the company announced on Monday. According to information available on Ventripoint’s website, VMS was originally designed for congenital heart disease, with subsequent…

A group of researchers from Flinders Medical Centre and Flinders University in Australia are working to make measuring pulmonary pressures safer for patients with pulmonary hypertension. Their study, published in Critical Ultrasound Journal,investigated the use of ultrasound-echocardiography for estimating mean pulmonary arterial pressure in critically ill patients. Although…

Back in early June, Pulmonary Hypertension News profiled PH advocates Team Phenomenal Hope and their compelling bicycle trek through twelve states, 3,000 miles, and 170,000 vertical feet of elevation, in order to raise money and awareness for the disease. The race, which began on June, 14th in Oceanside, California, concluded…

Cambridge University professor Nicholas Morrell, a leading researcher specializing in the study of heart disease, was recently awarded a £200,000 grant ($342,920) to investigate the causes of inherited pulmonary arterial hypertension. The award was granted by the British Heart Foundation (BHF), an organization engaged in helping the 3,200 people in…