News

A new study identified two potential therapeutic targets for pulmonary hypertension (PH) associated with heart failure. The two related enzymes, named ROCK1 and ROCK2, were seen to exert opposing effects on heart muscle cells, either preventing or promoting PH, in mouse models of…

Long-term use of ralinepag, an investigational therapy being developed by Arena Pharmaceuticals, can promote positive changes in the outcome of patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), interim data from a Phase 2 extension trial shows. After taking oral ralinepag for a median of up to 1.8 years, patients continued…

Inspiratory muscle weakness aggravates shortness of breath caused by exertion and lung function capacity in patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension, a study has found. The study, “Inspiratory muscle weakness contributes to exertional dyspnea in chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension,” was published in the journal PLOS One. CTEPH is a…

Drinking nitrate-rich beetroot juice can improve the production of nitric oxide in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), a small clinical trial shows. Data from the trial was reported in the study, “Effects of oral supplementation with nitrate-rich beetroot juice in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension…

Arterial stiffness, a marker of atherosclerosis, is significantly greater in patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) compared to people with other diseases that also put them at risk of atherosclerosis, researchers report. The study, “Increased systemic arterial stiffness in patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension,” was published…

Aria CV, a company developing medical devices for pulmonary hypertension (PH), won the TCT 2018 Shark Tank Competition, a contest created to highlight the most innovative devices and technologies in the field of cardiovascular medicine. The announcement was made by the nonprofit research and educational organization Cardiovascular…

Long-term oxygen therapy had a damaging effect on rats with induced idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), leading to poorer outcomes and reduced survival rates. That finding was reported in the study “Oxygen therapy may worsen the survival rate in rats with monocrotaline-induced pulmonary arterial hypertension,” and published in…

More than 700 medical experts, pharmaceutical executives, patient advocates, and others are expected to converge on Washington, D.C., next month for the 2018 NORD Rare Diseases & Orphan Products Breakthrough Summit. The Oct. 15-16 event, sponsored by the National Organization for Rare Diseases (NORD), takes place at the…

Off-label use of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) medications to treat patients with pulmonary hypertension caused by left heart disease (PH-LHD) is common, despite a lack of supporting clinical data. Now, a systematic review and pooled analysis of several clinical…

Exhaled breath temperature could serve as a potential prognostic biomarker for patients with pulmonary hypertension (PH), a new study shows. The study, “Exhaled Nitric Oxide and Exhaled Breath Temperature as Potential Biomarkers in Patients with Pulmonary Hypertension,” was published in the journal Biomed Research International. There is a…

Idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (IPAH) patients who failed to respond to treatment with Revatio (sildenafil), either alone or combined with other phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors, may benefit by switching to Adempas (riociguat), according to results of a pilot study. Adempas was also seen to ably help treatment-naive patients, using it as a first…

Actelion Pharmaceuticals’ Opsumit (macitentan) may be a potential therapy for portopulmonary hypertension, according to positive results from a Phase 4 clinical study. The data was presented at the European Respiratory Society (ERS) meeting, held Sept. 15-19 in Paris. The development of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in association with…