Prostacyclin and Primary Pulmonary Hypertension
Authors: Stuart Rich
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (1994)

Editorials15 September 1994Prostacyclin and Primary Pulmonary HypertensionStuart Rich, MDStuart Rich, MDUniversity of Illinois at Chicago; Chicago, IL 60612-7323Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-121-6-199409150-00012 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail Fortunately, primary pulmonary hypertension is uncommon. Most physicians only know of it from reading in medical school that it is a fatal disease that typically affects young women in the prime of their life and for which no therapy exists. Those who have had to care for affected patients can testify to how it erodes the quality of a patient's life by making the most menial task limited by dyspnea, syncope, and fatigue and how it progresses unabated until the patient succumbs. In the past, experts would feel a profound sense of ambivalence when a patient with the disorder was ...References1. Reitz BA, Wallwork JL, Hunt SA, Pennock JL, Billingham ME, Oyer PE, et al. Heart-lung transplantation: successful therapy for patients with pulmonary vascular disease. N Engl J Med. 1982; 306:557-64. Google Scholar2. Rich S, Brundage BH. High-dose calcium channel-blocking therapy for primary pulmonary hypertension: evidence for long term reduction in pulmonary arterial pressure and regression in right ventricular hypertrophy. Circulation. 1987; 76:135-41. Google Scholar3. Rich S, Kaufmann E, Levy PS. The effect of high doses of calcium-channel blockers on survival in primary pulmonary hypertension. N Engl J Med. 1992; 327:76-81. Google Scholar4. Rubin LJ, Mendoza J, Hood M, McGoon M, Barst R, Williams WB, et al. Treatment of primary pulmonary hypertension with continuous intravenous prostacyclin (epoprostenol). Results of a randomized trial. Ann Intern Med. 1990; 112:485-91. Google Scholar5. Barst RJ, Rubin LJ, McGoon MD, Caldwell EJ, Long WA, Levy PS. Survival in primary pulmonary hypertension with long-term continuous intravenous prostacyclin. Ann Intern Med. 1994; 121:409-415. Google Scholar6. Christman BW, McPherson CD, Newman JH, King GA, Bernard GR, Groves BH, et al. An imbalance between the excretion of thromboxane and prostacyclin metabolites in pulmonary hypertension. N Engl J Med. 1992; 327:70-5. Google Scholar7. Jones DK, Higginbottam TW, Wallwork J. Treatment of primary pulmonary hypertension with intravenous epoprostenol (prostacyclin). Br Heart J. 1987; 57:270-8. Google Scholar8. Decker MD, Edwards KM. Central venous catheter infections. Pediatr Clin North Am. 1988; 35:579-612. Google Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAuthors: Stuart Rich, MDAffiliations: University of Illinois at Chicago; Chicago, IL 60612-7323 PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoSurvival in Primary Pulmonary Hypertension with Long-Term Continuous Intravenous Prostacyclin Robyn J. Barst , Lewis J. Rubin , Michael D. McGoon , Edgar J. Caldwell , Walker A. Long , and Paul S. Levy Metrics Cited byAtteinte pulmonaire au cours de la sclérodermie systémique. Partie II. Hypertension artérielle pulmonaire isolée, cancer bronchopulmonaire, hémorragie alvéolairePGI2 and Its Analogs: From Pharmacology to Therapeutic Applications 15 September 1994Volume 121, Issue 6 Page: 463-464 Keywords Catheters Heart Heart rate Lung transplantation Patient advocacy Patients Prostacyclin Pulmonary hypertension Quality of life Transplantation ePublished: 15 August 2000 Issue Published: 15 September 1994 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 1994 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...