The 5 Different Classes of Pulmonary Hypertension

The following are the 5 different classes of pulmonary hypertension. For a detailed overview of each class, click on the link: 

• Arterial PH: Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) involves abnormally high blood pressure (hypertension) in the pulmonary artery.

• Venous PH: Pulmonary venous hypertension (PVH) differs from PAH in that high blood pressure occurs when the heart can’t efficiently carry blood away from the lungs.

• Hypoxic PH: Pulmonary hypoxic hypertension as the name suggests involves high blood pressure and low oxygen (hypoxic) levels.

• Thromboembolic PH: When thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension becomes chronic, it causes severe pulmonary hypertension.  Unfortunately, this form of PH is often under-diagnosed.

• Miscellaneous PH: In 2008, the miscellaneous pulmonary hypertension category was expanded to include the “other” category associated with PAH.  This allows for recognition of complex and poorly understood links between systemic disorders, blood disorders, metabolic disorders and other medical issues and PAH.

Read the latest updates on pulmonary hypertension: http://bit.ly/1K4oewk