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For all of you Ms. and Mr. Hospital Corners out there, I see you!

No, I don’t see or care how you made your bed today, but I do care about how you’re holding up as caregivers.

Due to rapid decline from pulmonary hypertension (PH), my son Cullen received a heart and double-lung transplant almost eight years ago. When I take him to post-transplant appointments at the hospital, I look for you.

I usually find you somewhere in a hospital corner trying to smooth out your emotional wrinkles. I see you struggling to tuck away bad news or a bad day as you consider comforting words for your loved one to rest their head upon. read more

Elevated metabolites of the kynurenine pathway in the bloodstream of people with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) when they’re diagnosed predicted disease severity, their response to therapy, and survival, a study discovered.

Activation of the kynurenine pathway, related to vitamin B3 production, was found to be linked to inflammation via the immune signaling molecule interleukin-6 and its receptor.

Whether targeting this pathway leads to a new treatment strategy for PAH remains to be established, the researchers noted. read more

Nearly a third (29.7%) of COVID-19 patients showed signs of pulmonary hypertension (PH) on an echocardiogram — a scan of heart movement — according to a study in the Netherlands.

While mortality rates were significantly higher among those with suspected PH than those without it, follow-up tests suggested that signs of PH were reversible in surviving patients.

The findings suggest estimated PH may be a prognostic risk factor in COVID-19 patients, the researchers said, adding that “vigilant attention” should be paid for signs of PH in this population. read more

Yutrepia, an inhaled formulation of treprostinil, was generally well tolerated and improved the quality of life for people with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in the Phase 3 INSPIRE clinical trial.

The therapy was preferred by nearly all trial participants who switched to it from Tyvaso, an older inhaled treprostinil formulation marketed by United Therapeutics.

Full trial results were detailed in the study, “INSPIRE: Safety and Tolerability of Inhaled LIQ861 (Treprostinil) in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PAH),” published in Pulmonary Circulation. The work was funded by Yutrepia developer Liquidia. read more

I know what I’m about to say will make some of you roll your eyes, but it’s so important.

Drink water every day!

I’m reminding you because a scary dehydration event recently reminded me.

Last Wednesday, my dog woke me at 5:30 in the morning. Standing next to my bed, I remember looking down at my legs, waiting for them to move. Not that I couldn’t physically move them, but more like my mind couldn’t remember how to get my legs going.

I dismissed it as still being half-asleep and concentrated on making my way to the bathroom. As I did, my breathing became labored, and I felt disoriented. Concerned, I turned into my son Cullen’s room, sat on his floor, and struggled to form the words to explain what was happening. read more

When done during pregnancy, an echocardiogram — a noninvasive measurement of heart function that uses sound waves — may help doctors predict pulmonary hypertension in newborns, a study in China suggests.

An echocardiogram can show how well the heart’s right ventricle, one of its bottom pumping chambers, will push blood through to the lungs without becoming too stressed. According to researchers, prenatal echocardiogram results strongly predicted the likelihood of a baby being diagnosed with persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN) after birth. read more

More than half of people with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) who start daily treatment with oral Opsumit (macitentan) are expected to still be alive after nine years on the therapy, according to a new analysis of data from the SERAPHIN clinical trial and its open-label extension.

“These analyses provide important clinical insights into the long-term safety and tolerability for PAH patients receiving [Opsumit] 10 mg, with a follow-up period of up to 9 years,” its researchers wrote. read more

When I was 8 or 9 years old, the alarm of my IV pump went off in the middle of dance class. When you’re placed on an IV medication for pulmonary hypertension (PH), you are heavily educated on its short half-life and the reality that any pause in medication delivery can be deadly.

We lived about 20 minutes from the studio, so when my instructor called the cellphone number listed in my file, my mom almost tore a door off our car when rushing out of the garage in a panic.

In a moment of clear thinking, she remembered that my friend’s older sister was scheduled for carpool pickup that night. This family thought of me as one of its own throughout childhood. Each member was intimately familiar with my illness and the high-risk nature of my IV medications. read more

After my bloodwork a few weeks ago, I stopped by a local 7-Eleven to grab an iced coffee. I parked and went in. An older man came in behind me and said, “Do you know you’re parked in handicapped? You’ll get a ticket.”

I turned around, oxygen cannula and all, and said, “Sorry, sir, I am disabled.” He said I looked so healthy. (Insert eye roll now.) I thanked him for the warning and reminded him that not all disabilities are visible. Imagine how he might’ve treated me if I weren’t using my oxygen at that moment. read more

Treatment with Uptravi (selexipag) significantly improved blood flow parameters in people with inoperable or persistent chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) in a Phase 3 clinical trial, although its use did not significantly affect measures of physical abilities.

Full trial results are in “Selexipag for the treatment of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension,” published in the European Respiratory Journal. The study was funded by Uptravi’s developers, Nippon Shinyaku and Janssen. read more