Member Comments are provided by individuals and reflect their personal opinions only. Under NO circumstances should you act on any advice or opinion posted in this forum. ALWAYS check with your personal physician before taking any action regarding your health! MedHelp International and our partners, sponsors and affiliates have no obligation to monitor any comments posted on this site, or the content and/or accuracy of such exchanges. MedHelp International does not endorse the views of any user.
Heart Disease (Expert Forum)
Pulmonary hypertension in 21 yr. old boy
This forum is for questions and support regarding heart issues such as: Angina, Angioplasty, Arrhythmia, Bypass Surgery, Cardiomyopathy, Coronary Artery Disease, Defibrillator, Heart Attack, Heart Disease, High Blood Pressure, Mitral Valve Prolapse, Pacemaker, PAD, Stenosis, Stress Tests.
Pulmonary hypertension in 21 yr. old boy
by Flora__0, Feb 02, 1999 12:00AM
Dear Doctors:
Carlito is a twenty-one year old male. He has short bowel syndrome since the age of 3. The patient now has high pulmonary hypertension with pulmonary thrombosis. The family is trying to locate the best specialist possible in pulmonary high blood pressure in order to lower the pressure. His pressure is 3 times the norm. Carlito has been in the hospital off and on since age 3 and has now been hospitalized for 3-1/2 weeks. The doctors at Brookdale, where he is now say they do not have the expertise to lower the pressure because it so high. A special procedure is needed that they are not equipped to do.
Is there a physician at CCF who specializes in pulmonary hypertension?
If you can offer a referral to a physician in the NYC area also, that would be most appreciated!
Thank you so much for this wonderful site ... Your help with this will be a Godsend!
Flora
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Flora,
Thank you for your question. Pulmonary artery (PA) pressure is much like systemic blood pressure except that it is the blood pressure in the lungs. PA pressure is a low pressure system with the normal pressure being about 25/12 mmHg with a mean pressure of 16 mmHg.
There are many causes of high pulmonary pressures. The most likely cause is long standing heart valve problems. Other potential causes are chronic blood clots (pulmonary thrombosis), congenital heart disease, obstructive lung disease, collagen vascular disease, parasitic disease involving the lung, sickle cell anemia, IV drug abuse and chronic liver disease. If no cause of the hypertension can be found the diagnosis of primary pulmonary hypertension is made.
The treatment of pulmonary hypertension is difficult. Vasodilator drugs such as calcium channel blockers can be used. Nitric oxide lowers PA pressure but only lasts for a very short time. Flolan (Prostacyclin) lasts for a longer time but must be given intravenously and is very expensive. Anticoagulation is recommended for patients with blood clots. For patients who fail to respond to medical therapy the only option is lung transplantion.
I don't know anyone in the NYC area but I am sure one of the university hospitals would provide excellent care. If you would like to see someone at the Cleveland Clinic I would recommend Dr. Wiederman, the head of the department. Additional information can be found at: http://www4.clevelandclinic.org/staff/GetStaff.Asp?StaffId=1019
I hope you find this information useful. Information provided in the heart forum is for general purposes only. Only your physician can provide specific diagnoses and therapies. Please feel free to write back with additional questions.
If you would like to make an appointment at the Cleveland Clinic Heart Center, please call 1-800-CCF-CARE or inquire online by using the Heart Center website at www.ccf.org/heartcenter. The Heart Center website contains a directory of the cardiology staff that can be used to select the physician best suited to address your cardiac problem.
Carlito is a twenty-one year old male. He has short bowel syndrome since the age of 3. The patient now has high pulmonary hypertension with pulmonary thrombosis. The family is trying to locate the best specialist possible in pulmonary high blood pressure in order to lower the pressure. His pressure is 3 times the norm. Carlito has been in the hospital off and on since age 3 and has now been hospitalized for 3-1/2 weeks. The doctors at Brookdale, where he is now say they do not have the expertise to lower the pressure because it so high. A special procedure is needed that they are not equipped to do.
Is there a physician at CCF who specializes in pulmonary hypertension?
If you can offer a referral to a physician in the NYC area also, that would be most appreciated!
Thank you so much for this wonderful site ... Your help with this will be a Godsend!
Flora
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Flora,
Thank you for your question. Pulmonary artery (PA) pressure is much like systemic blood pressure except that it is the blood pressure in the lungs. PA pressure is a low pressure system with the normal pressure being about 25/12 mmHg with a mean pressure of 16 mmHg.
There are many causes of high pulmonary pressures. The most likely cause is long standing heart valve problems. Other potential causes are chronic blood clots (pulmonary thrombosis), congenital heart disease, obstructive lung disease, collagen vascular disease, parasitic disease involving the lung, sickle cell anemia, IV drug abuse and chronic liver disease. If no cause of the hypertension can be found the diagnosis of primary pulmonary hypertension is made.
The treatment of pulmonary hypertension is difficult. Vasodilator drugs such as calcium channel blockers can be used. Nitric oxide lowers PA pressure but only lasts for a very short time. Flolan (Prostacyclin) lasts for a longer time but must be given intravenously and is very expensive. Anticoagulation is recommended for patients with blood clots. For patients who fail to respond to medical therapy the only option is lung transplantion.
I don't know anyone in the NYC area but I am sure one of the university hospitals would provide excellent care. If you would like to see someone at the Cleveland Clinic I would recommend Dr. Wiederman, the head of the department. Additional information can be found at: http://www4.clevelandclinic.org/staff/GetStaff.Asp?StaffId=1019
I hope you find this information useful. Information provided in the heart forum is for general purposes only. Only your physician can provide specific diagnoses and therapies. Please feel free to write back with additional questions.
If you would like to make an appointment at the Cleveland Clinic Heart Center, please call 1-800-CCF-CARE or inquire online by using the Heart Center website at www.ccf.org/heartcenter. The Heart Center website contains a directory of the cardiology staff that can be used to select the physician best suited to address your cardiac problem.
