Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2012 May;30(2):243-56.
doi: 10.1016/j.ccl.2012.03.005.

Right ventricular dysfunction in chronic lung disease

Todd M Kolb  1 , Paul M Hassoun
Affiliations
Review

Right ventricular dysfunction in chronic lung disease

Todd M Kolb et al. Cardiol Clin. 2012 May.

Abstract

Right ventricular (RV) dysfunction arises in chronic lung disease when chronic hypoxemia and disruption of pulmonary vascular beds increase ventricular afterload. RV dysfunction is defined by hypertrophy with preserved myocardial contractility and cardiac output. RV hypertrophy seems to be a common complication of chronic and advanced lung disease. RV failure is rare, except during acute exacerbations of chronic lung disease or when multiple comorbidities are present. Treatment is targeted at correcting hypoxia and improving pulmonary gas exchange and mechanics. There are no data supporting the use of pulmonary hypertension-specific therapies for patients with RV dysfunction secondary to chronic lung disease.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Correlation of mean pulmonary arterial pressure (mPAP) with PaO2 (left and percentage of predicted DLCO (% DLCO; right) in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. From Hamada K, Nagai S, Tanaka S, et al. Significance of pulmonary arterial pressure and diffusion capacity of the lung as prognosticator in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Chest. 2007; 131(3):650-56, with permission.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Prognostic impact of mean pulmonary arterial pressure (mPAP) on survival in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). Thin line represents IPF patients with normal mPAP (n=37); thick line represents IPF patients with elevated mPAP (n=24). Adapted from Hamada K, Nagai S, Tanaka S, et al. Significance of pulmonary arterial pressure and diffusion capacity of the lung as prognosticator in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Chest. 2007; 131(3):650-56, with permission.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Laennec RT. A treatise on diseases of the chest. T. and G. Underwood; London: 1821.
    1. Chronic cor pulmonale: Report of an expert committee. Circulation. 1963;27:594–615. - PubMed
    1. Simonneau G, Robbins IM, Beghetti M, et al. Updated clinical classification of pulmonary hypertension. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2009;54(1 Suppl):S43–54. - PubMed
    1. Ben Jrad I, Slimane ML, Boujnah MR, Ben Hamda K, Ameur Y. [Prognosis and treatment of chronic cor pulmonale] Tunis Med. 1993;71(11):505–8. - PubMed
    1. Weitzenblum E, Chaouat A, Canuet M, Kessler R. Pulmonary hypertension in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and interstitial lung diseases. Semin Respir Crit Care Med. 2009;30(4):458–70. - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms