Objective To make an individualized treatment plan concerning a newborn with meconium aspiration syndrome combined with persistent pulmonary hypertension. Methods Based on the clinical questions raised by a newborn with meconium aspiration syndrome combined with persistent pulmonary hypertension, we searched The Cochrane Library (Issue 3, 2009), MEDLINE (1980 to June 2009), ACP Journal Club (1991 to June 2009), and Chinese Journal Fulltext Database (1994 to June 2009) for systematic reviews, randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and case-control studies. The quality of the included studies was assessed. Results A total of 9 RCTs, 1 health economic evaluation, 1 meta analysis, and 2 systematic reviews were considered eligible. The evidence indicated that the use of ECMO in infants of PPHN had shown a decreased risk of death, but not cost-saving from a societal perspective; iNO treatment could improve the PaO2 and resulted in a reduction in the incidence of requirement for ECMO; there were not randomized controlled trials regarding the treatment of PPHN by hyperventilation, high-frequency ventilation, alkali infusion, pulmonary vasodilators (magnesium sulfate, tolazoline, prostaglandin or prostacyclin, milrinone), surfactant therapy; oral sildenafil could lower oxygenation index (OI) and result in a reduction in the incidence of death. The individualized treatment plans of oral sildenafil were developed based on the available evidence, existing conditions of the hospital, and the values of children with families. After 1 month of treatment, the FiO2 returned to normal and symptoms were alleviated. Conclusion The treatment efficacies and the survival rates in meconium aspiration syndrome combined with PPHN have been improved by determining an individualized treatment plan according to evidence-based methods.
Objective To observe the efficacy and safety of sildenafil in one case of PoPH patients. Methods A case of PoPH patient who was successfully treated with sildenafil was retrospectively analyzed，and literatures related sildenafil and PoPH were reviewed. Results A case of PoPH patient admitted with dyspnea on extetion was diagnosed with echocardiography，gastroscrope and other examinations. She was treated with sildenafil and responded well by decreased pulmonary arterial pressure，improved exercise tolerance and life quality，without obvious side effects. Literatures review suggested that PoPH is an under-recognized but life-threatening complication of cirrhosis or noncirrhotic portal hypertension with poor prognosis which exists in decompensated chronic liver diseases patients. The most classic symptoms of PoPH is progressive dyspnea on extertion. PoPH patients may benefit from sildenafil therapy with decreased pulmonary arterial pressure and improved life quality. Conclusions Theawareness of PoPH should be increased and Sildenafil may be effective and safe for PoPH patients. However，more evidences from clinical trials are needed.
Objective To investigate the effects of simvastatin on the collagen synthesis of rat pulmonary arterial smooth muscle cells ( PASMCs ) induced by hypoxia. Methods Under hypoxic condition, rat PASMCs were cultured with different concentrations of simvastatin. Collagen synthesis of PASMCs with or without simvastatin were measured by 3H-proline incorporation assay. The mRNA expression of TGF-β1 and the contents of super oxide dismrtase ( SOD) ,malondialdehyde ( MDA) in mediumwere also measured. Results The incorporation data of 3H-TdR in the hypoxia group was significantly increased as compared with that in the control group ( P lt;0. 01) , and simvastatin significantly reduced the incorporation data of 3H-TdR induced by hypoxia. The expression of TGF-β1 mRNA in the hypoxia group was significantly increased as compared with that in the control group ( P lt; 0. 01 ) , and simvastatin could significantly inhibited hypoxia-induced expression of TGF-β1 mRNA in a dose-dependent manner. Compared with the hypoxia group, the expression of TGF-β1 mRNA decreased by 55% in simvastatin( 10 - 6mol /L) group ( P lt; 0. 01) , and by 70% ( P lt; 0. 01) in simvastatin ( 10 - 5mol /L) group. Compared with the control group, the activity of SOD was reduced and the contents of MDA were increased significantly in the hypoxia group. Simvastatin can increase the activity of SOD and reduced the content of MDA in a dose-dependent manner. Conclusions Simvastatin can decreases collagen synthesis of PASMCs. This effect might be explained that simvastatin can reduce lipid peroxide and expression of TGF-β1 mRNA.
Objective To investigate the relation of spinal ventricular septal angle (SVSA) measured by computer tomographic pulmonary angiography (CTPA) and pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) measured by right heart catheterization in patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) .Methods Eighty-nine patients with CTEPH (male 57, female 32; 53.08 ±12.43 years) were recruited as a CTEPH group, and 89 patients without pulmonary artery hypertension and pulmonary embolismwere recruited as a control group. The CTEPH patients received CTPA before right-heart catheterization and pulmonary angiography. SVSA and pulmonary artery obstruction indexes including Qanadli Index and Mastora index were evaluated by two radiologists.Results SVSA was 65.13°±12.26°and 39.69°±5.84°in the CTEPH group and the control group respectively, with significant difference between two groups ( t =14.479, P = 0.000) . Qanadli index of the CTEPH patients was( 42.50 ±17.67) % , which had no correlation with SVSA ( r= 0.094, P = 0.552) . Mastora index was ( 30.02 ±15.53) % , which also had no correlation with SVSA ( r=0.025, P =0.873) . SVSA had a moderate positive correlation with PVR ( r =0.529, P =0.000) and a weak positive correlation with right atriumpressure ( r =0.270, P =0.010) . Area under ROC was 0.764 and sensitivity, specificity for PVR≥1000 dyne· s· cm- 5 was 0.714 and 0.778 respectively when SVSA≥67.55°. Conclusion SVSA measured by CTPA can be used as a better predictor for evaluating PVR in CTEPH patients.
Abstract: Objective To analyze the results of preoperative evaluation of the operability of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH), and to find parameters to define the inconsistency between the operable lesions of CTEPH and pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR). Methods A total of 133 patients with CTEPH admitted into Anzhen Hospital were enrolled for preoperative assessment of operability from March 2002 to May 2010. There were 86 males and 47 females with an age of 49.10±22.70 years. The patients were divided into operable group (group A, n=82，age of 47.80±21.60 years) and inoperable group (group B, n=51, age of 50.30±23.40 years) according to the assessment suggestion. We evaluated the occluded pulmonary segment（OPS） of all the patients through pulmonary ventilation/perfusion scintigraphy， and measured the plasma aminoterminal Btype natriuretic peptide (NT-pro BNP) and PVR. Then the ratio of NT-pro BNP to OPS and PVR to OPS were calculated. [CM(159mm]Results Out of the 82 patients with CTEPH in group A, 81 were positive in the anesthesia test and were subject to pulmonary thromboendarterectomy(PTE). In the whole cohorts of operated patients, there was one early death due to persistent pulmonary hypertension and right heart failure. The specificity of the anesthesia test was 98.78%. Eighty patients (98.77%) were followed up in this group for a period of 1 to 95 months (42.70±28.40 months). During the followup, there was one late death due to pulmonary artery hypertension crisis. Among the 51 patients with CTEPH in group B, there were 32 patients (62.75%) with surgically inaccessible lesions, 13 patients (25.49%) with surgical accessible CTEPH concomitant with severe diseases, and 6 patients (11.76%) with inconsistency between the surgical accessible lesion and high PVR. The ratio of NT-pro BNP to OPS and PVR to OPS for the 81 positive patients in group A was in the range of 80-150 pg·ml-1/OPS and 50-100 dyn·s·cm-5/OPS, respectively. The ratio of NT-pro BNP to OPS (315.00±83.00 pg·ml-1/OPS vs. 115.60±40.50 pg·ml-1/OPS, P=0.000) and PVR to OPS (190.00±57.00 dyn·s·cm－5/OPS vs. 76.40±26.30 dyn·s·cm-5/OPS, P=0.000) for the 6 patients with incosistency between the surgical accessible lesion and high PVR in group B were significantly higher than that for the 81 positive patients in group A. Conclusion Surgically inaccessible CTEPH lesions, CTEPH concomitant with severe diseases, and inconsistency between surgical accessible lesion and high PVR are the three most frequent reasons for denying PTE procedure. The ratio of NTpro BNP to OPS and PVR to OPS may serve as the parameters to define the inconsistency between the surgical accessible lesion and high PVR. Anesthesia test before the PTE procedure may serve as the last evaluation method for the assessment of the operability of CTEPH.
Objective To investigate the incidence and management of CTEPH in the Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine in Xijing Hospital to enrich the epidemiological data of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) in China.Methods We conducted a retrospective study to investigate the incidence and management of CTEPH in the Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine in Xijing Hospital from 2008 to 2012. Results The incidence of CTEPH was 5.24% . About 62.90% of venous thromboembolism/pulmonary embolism (VTE/PE) patients were unprovoked, and about 53.85% of CTEPH patients was unprovoked. About 38% of CTEPH patients had no history of VTE, and 62% of CTEPH patients had no history of acute pulmonary embolism. None of the CTEPH patients was treated by pulmonary thromboendarterctom (PTE) , and about 53.85% of patients were only given anticoagulant monotherapy. Conclusions The incidence of CTEPH is higher in our hospital than reported. This phenomenon may be related to the lack of awareness of risk factors of CTEPH and the insufficient thrombolytic and anticoagulant therapy to acute pulmonary embolism. It’s very urgent to standardize the diagnosis and management of CTEPH in pulmonologists.
Medical nitric oxide (NO) flow control system plays an important role in lowering pulmonary hypertension. The design requirements, overall scheme, delivery system and hardware circuits of a medical NO flow control system were introduced in this paper. Particularly, we proposed the design of NO delivery system and hardware circuits in detail. To deliver nitric oxide of a variable concentration, the designed system needs to work with a ventilator. The system can adjust and monitor the inhaled nitric oxide concentrations and send out sound and light alarms when the inhaled nitric oxide concentrations are out of the set range. To validate reliability and efficacy, we measured specifications such as linearity, stability and response time of the proposed NO flow control system by continuously administering nitric oxide into inspiratory circuit to deliver nitric oxide of variable concentrations to a test lung. The experiments showed that these specifications can meet the desired requirements.
Objective To discuss the safety and validity of pulmonary endarterectomy (PEA) for chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) patients with severe right heart failure (RHF). Methods PEA procedures were performed on 36 patients in Fu Wai Hospital from January 2015 to April 2016. There were 28 males and 8 females, with a mean age of 46.56±11.85 years. According to the New York Heart Association (NYHA) cardiac function classification, 36 patients were divided into preoperative severe RHF group (grade Ⅲ-Ⅳ,n=28) and preoperative without severe RHF group (grade Ⅱ,n=8). Hemodynamic parameters before and after PEA were recorded and 3-18 months' follow-up was done. Results All the patients having PEA surgeries had an obvious decrease of mean pulmonary arterial pressure (from 49.53±13.14 mm Hg to 23.58±10.79 mm Hg) and pulmonary vascular resistance (from 788.46±354.60 dyn·s/cm5 to 352.89±363.49 dyn·s/cm5, bothP<0.001). There was no in-hospital mortality among all the patients. Persistent pulmonary hypertension occurred in 2 patients, perfused lung in 2 patients, pericardial effusion in 2 patients. No mortality was found during the follow-up period. All patients improved to NYHA grade Ⅰ-Ⅱ (WHO grade Ⅰ-Ⅱ), and only 2 patients remained in the NYHA grade Ⅲ (P<0.01). Conclusion The CTEPH patients having PEA surgeries had an obvious improvement in both their hemodynamics results and postoperative heart function, which in return could improve their quality of life.
Objective To investigate the effect of low-flow inhaling NO for short time on postoperative cardiac and pulmonary functions in infants with congenital ventricular septal defect complicated with severe pulmonary hypertension. Methods Forty-five patients with congenital ventricular septal defect complicated with severe pulmonary hypertension from May 2014 to May 2016 in our hospital were enrolled. There were 19 males and 26 females, whose age ranged from 1 to 22 months (average age: 7.2±14.4 months) and weight ranged from 2.7 to 10.5 kg (average weight: 6.8±3.6 kg). The patients were randomly divided into three groups (n=15 in each): the blank group, the prior inhalation group and the posterior inhalation group. The blank group did not inhale NO, and the prior inhalation group inhalated NO for 10 min after tracheal and intubation. After the opening of the aorta, the posterior inhalation group inhaled NO for 10 min. The concentration of NO was 20 × 10–6. The pressure ratio of pulmonary circulation/systematic circulation, heart index and oxygenation index were calculated and the troponin value of the three groups was monitored 10 min after returning to intensive care unit (ICU) and postoperatively 1 h, 3 h and 24 h. Differences among above indicators between three groups were compared. Results The troponin value of the posterior inhalation group within 3 h increased most, followed by the blank group and the prior inhalation group. Postoperatively 1 h and 3 h, the troponin value of the prior inhalation group was significantly less than that of the blank group and posterior inhalation group (P<0.01) and the value on postoperative 24 h in each group was lower than that on postoperative 3 h. The cardiac index of prior inhalation group was higher than that of the blank group and the posterior inhalation group at each time point. Postoperatively 3 h and 24 has well as 10 min after returning to ICU, the cardiac index in prior inhalation group was significantly higher than that of the posterior inhalation group (P<0.05). The pressure ratio of pulmonary circulation/systematic circulation of posterior inhalation group increased more than that of blank group; the differences in two groups were significant between postoperative 3 h and 10 min after returning to ICU (P<0.01). There was no statistical significance in the pressure ratio on postoperative 24 h and 10 min after returning to ICU (P>0.05) in three groups. The index of oxygenation of the prior inhalation group was higher than that of the blank group and the posterior inhalation group and statistically different from that of posterior inhalation group (P<0.05). Conclusion Inhaling NO 10 min preoperatively can reduce the injury to the heart and lung function effectively, but the result is the opposite when inhalating NO 10 min after aorta opening.
Objective To explore current results after staged operations in patients with functional single ventricle anomalies and pulmonary hypertension. Methods We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 129 patients with functional single ventricle anomalies and pulmonary hypertension undergoing pulmonary artery banding in our hospital between April 2008 and December 2015. There were 81 males and 48 females. There were 71 patients with double outlet of right ventricle, 17 patients with tricuspid atresia, 7 patients with transposition of great arteries, 33 patients with uni-ventricular heart, and one patient with complete atrio-ventricular septal defect. The surgical results, transition to Glenn procedure and subsequent transition to Fontan procedure were analyzed. Results The 129 patients underwent 159 operations of pulmonary artery banding totally. Hospital mortality was 4.7% (6/129). Nine patients were lost to follow-up. Eighty-seven (67.4%) patients underwent the second-stage Glenn procedure, and 43 patients(33.3%) underwent third-stage Fontan procedure. Two patients died after Glenn and 3 patients died after Fontan separately. There were 32 patients who accompanied with coarctation, interruption of aortic arch, heterotaxy, total anomalous pulmonary venous connection or atrio-ventricular valve regurgitation. Fifteen (46.9%) patients succeeded in transition to Glenn, and 6 (18.8%) patients succeeded in transition to Fontan. Fourteen patients developed obstruction of left ventricular outlet tract or bulbo-ventricular foramen. Conclusion Early pulmonary artery banding is an acceptable strategy for patients with single ventricle anomalies and pulmonary hypertension. Outcomes and results of subsequent Glenn and Fontan procedures are generally good. Accompanied complex anomalies are risk factors for lower ratio of transition to Glenn and Fontan procedure.