A type of high blood pressure, which affects the arteries in your lungs and also your heart’s right side, is pulmonary hypertension. The walls of the pulmonary arteries cannot expand properly to let the blood pass through as the walls become thick and stiff. The right side of your heart finds it difficult to pump blood through the arteries due to the reduced blood flow. This side becomes weak as it has to continuously work harder. This ultimately leads to heart failure. People of all ages can suffer from pulmonary hypertension. However, it is more common in people suffering from another heart or lung condition.
Symptoms
The different symptoms are:
- Fatigue
- Shortness of breath
- Dizziness
- Pain or pressure in the chest
- Palpitations
- Swelling in the legs, ankles, feet and abdomen
During exercise, the symptoms often get worse and this restricts you to fully participate in physical activities.
You should consult a lungs specialist doctor in Kolkata if you are having these symptoms.
Causes
Depending on the cause, pulmonary hypertension is divided into five groups.
Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH)
Causes include:
- Genetic mutation
- Some medicines
- Congenital heart problems
- Connective tissue disorders
Pulmonary hypertension due to left-sided heart disease
Causes include:
- Left-sided heart valve disease
- Failure of the lower left heart chamber (left ventricle)
Pulmonary hypertension due to lung disease
Causes include:
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD)
- Pulmonary fibrosis
- Obstructive sleep apnea
Pulmonary hypertension due to chronic blood clots
Causes include:
- Chronic blood clots in the lungs
- Other clotting disorders
Pulmonary hypertension triggered by other health conditions
Causes include:
- Blood disorders
- Inflammatory disorders
- Metabolic disorders
- Kidney disease
- Tumours pressing against pulmonary arteries
Risk factors
The following factors can increase the risk of developing it.
- Obesity
- Exposure to asbestos
- A family history of the condition
- Blood-clotting disorders
- Living at a high altitude
- Genetic disorders
Diagnosis
A chest doctor in Kolkata will ask you about your symptoms, family history, medical history and the medicines you are currently taking. He/she will also carry out a physical examination. Some tests are also necessary for diagnosis.
- Echocardiogram
- Right heart catheterization
- Electrocardiogram
- Chest X-ray
- Lung function tests
- Ventilation/perfusion
- Polysomnogram
- Ventilation/perfusion
- Open-lung biopsy
Treatment
The best chest specialist doctor in Kolkata aims to improve your symptoms and slow the progress of pulmonary hypertension. If any other condition is causing pulmonary hypertension, the doctor will treat the underlying cause.
The use of medicines is quite common in this treatment. Blood vessel dilators (vasodilators), guanylate cyclase (GSC) stimulators, endothelin receptor antagonists, sildenafil and tadalafil, high-dose calcium channel blockers, warfarin, digoxin and diuretics are the different medicines. The doctor may sometimes provide oxygen therapy.
You may need to undergo surgery like atrial septostomy or a lung or heart-lung transplant if medicines have very little effects. The doctor will also suggest some changes in your lifestyle that are beneficial for you.
