PAH, a subgroup of pulmonary hypertension,[2] is a rare, severe and progressive disease characterised by chronic elevation in pulmonary vascular resistance and arterial pressure.*[3]If left untreated, PAH eventually results in right ventricular failure and death.[3][4]
Vascular remodelling in PAH leads to narrowing of the pulmonary arteries and increased pulmonary vascular resistance[3]
Increased pulmonary vascular resistance leads to high right ventricular afterload, hypertrophy, dilatation and, eventually, right heart failure[5]
*The current haemodynamic definition of PAH is mPAP ≥25 mmHg, PAWP ≤15 mmHg and PVR >3 Wood units.[2]
Early identification and intervention is key to changing the course of PAH[6]
CHD-PAH is a common PAH subtype, accounting for 10–20% of cases,[8] and represents a heterogeneous patient population.[9] Patients with CHD-PAH can be classified into one of four main subgroups according to the 2015 ESC/ERS guidelines:[9]
Patients with CHD are at risk of PAH, even when congenital heart defects are corrected[11]
Since PAH can develop over time despite surgery, patients with CHD need regular, long-term screening for PAH after defect correction[10][12]
Advances in the treatment of CHD over the past few decades have led to an increase in adult CHD survivors, who may then go on to develop PAH following defect correction.[13] The overall prevalence of PAH in patients with corrected simple defects, including ASD and VSD, ranges from 3% to 12%.*[14][7]
The number of patients who develop PAH after congenital defect correction is increasing[13]
*Data from adult patients with CHD in CONCOR, a Dutch registry (N=2,389),[14] and the Euro Heart survey database (N=1,877).[7]
In patients with corrected CHD, development of PAH is associated with significant worsening in functional limitations and poor long-term survival.*[15][7]
More than 1 in 3 patients with corrected CHD-PAH die within 10 years of PAH diagnosis[15]
*Data from patients with CHD-PAH in an Italian database study (N=192)16 and from patients with CHD in the Euro Heart survey database (N=1,877).[7]
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ACHD, adult congenital heart disease; ASD, atrial septal defect; CHD, congenital heart disease; CI, confidence interval; CT, computerised tomography; ECG, electrocardiography; ERS, European Respiratory Society; ESC, European Society of Cardiology; mPAP, mean pulmonary arterial pressure; MRI, magnetic resonance imaging; PA, pulmonary artery; PAH, pulmonary arterial hypertension; PAWP, pulmonary artery wedge pressure; PH, pulmonary hypertension; PVR, pulmonary vascular resistance; RHC, right heart catheterisation; TRV, tricuspid regurgitation velocity; VSD, ventricular septal defect; WSPH, World Symposium on Pulmonary Hypertension