A 41-study review of children with non-cancer chronic diseases looked at how much radiation they were exposed to during their relatively frequent medical imaging. Children with PH were included. The review found that plain x-rays did not lead to significant radiation accumulation, but CT scans and flouroscopy led to much higher accumulation. Read the review in Pediatric Radiology

A UK study examined the factors that affected physical activity participation among people with pulmonary hypertension (PH). They found four themes: fear of breathlessness; lack of motivation and a desire for monitoring and targets; keeping up appearances; and receiving little advice on physical activity, so they had to initiate communication themselves. The researchers suggest that broadening people's idea of what physical activity is, alongside goal-setting and deliberate m

Men with systemic sclerosis and pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) tend to have more heart-related complications and lower survival rates. Differences in the effects of hormones such as estrogen and testosterone may play a role. These findings underscore the importance of identifying higher-risk men early and developing treatment approaches better suited to their needs. Read the Clinical Medicine Insights: Cardiology article

A press release announced that the first two patients have enrolled in a trial of a treatment for Group 2 pulmonary hypertension (PH associated with left heart disease). The treatment procedure is minimally invasive and aims to reduce overactive nerve signals that might contribute to changes in the blood vessels in the lungs and to worsening heart and lung disease. Earlier studies confirmed that the procedure was safe and showed potential benefits. This procedure is also bein

A small molecule called microRNA-224-5p (miR-224) appears to play an important role in the changes to the lung blood vessels that occur in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Researchers found that miR-224 levels were higher in cells from people with PAH and in several animal models, and that increasing miR-224 worsened the disease. In contrast, blocking miR-224 reduced abnormal blood vessel changes and improved right heart function in mice and rats. The researchers believ

Researchers found that pre-treating pulmonary hypertension (PH) patients with dual therapy before they underwent balloon pulmonary angioplasty was associated with lower complications and better clinical outcomes, compared to mono therapy. Read the CHEST article

Infusion pump technology for subcutaneous prostacyclin analog therapy has improved, with improved user experiences, simplified priming processes, easier filling, capability for lower doses, and better safety alerts and alarms. This may allow more pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) patients to safely manage and benefit from subcutaneous prostacyclin analogs. Read the Advances in Therapy commentary

Secreted phosphoprotein 1 (SPP1) levels were higher in patients with PAH, and SPP1 levels were associated with disease severity. Patients who had postpartum adverse events had higher SPP1 concentrations. SPP1 may act as a predictor of adverse postpartum events for people with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), along with other clinical indicators. Read the European Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Reproductive Biology article

A survey of 200 people in the United States living with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) found that 85% had never discussed palliative care with their healthcare provider, even though nearly nine in 10 said they would feel comfortable doing so. Many participants mistakenly thought palliative care was only for end-of-life care, highlighting the need for better conversations so people understand how it can help manage symptoms and improve quality of life throughout their i

This study found that endoplasmic reticulum stress in lung blood vessels may contribute to pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) by triggering pyroptosis and damaging blood vessels. In rats, blocking this process reduced blood vessel damage and slowed the development of PAH. Read the Journal of the American Heart Association article

Patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension who took ralinepag in addition to their usual treatment were less likely to have their disease get worse than those who took a placebo. However, more people stopped taking ralinepag because of side effects. Read the Lancet article

Functional disability, but not chronic disease category or chronic pain, was independently associated with lower social support. Social isolation among Canadian adults is more closely associated with functional limitations than with diagnostic labels, underscoring the importance of function-focused approaches in research and intervention. Read the Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention Journal article

Researchers looked at smartphone data from 109 participants in the UK. Software was trained to distinguish idiopathic pulmonary hypertension (IPAH) and did so correctly at least 75% of the time. This suggests metrics from wearable tech can complement traditional risk assessment and may support earlier PAH detection. Read the NPJ Cardiovascular Health article

This press release reports that over the 12 months of their Expanded Access Program enrolling ten patients, the majority of patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension who completed treatment with drug candidate CS1 maintained or improved their functional and biomarker status, and that CS1 showed a favourable safety and tolerability profile. A Phase IIb trial for CS1 begins this summer. Read the Cereno Scientific press release

Clinical trials for sotatercept didn't include children, so any pediatric use is off-label. This study, conducted at one children's hospital in San Diego, evaluated sotatercept in 7 pediatric patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension who were already on triple therapy. A majority of patients had favourable hemodynamics trends, supporting the need for official pediatric studies. Read the Pediatric Cardiology article

A 9-participant phase 1 clinical trial used a patch to deliver a prodrug of treprostinil (a prodrug is something that is metabolized into the drug in question inside the body). Each participant wore a patch for 24 hours. The researchers found that treprostinil levels were steady, that different patch sizes could probably be used to deliver different doses, and that it was generally safe and well-tolerated. The company plans to continue clinical development. Read the press rel

In a study of a relatively low-risk population of pulmonary hypertension patients, researchers began to untangle sotatercept's complex effects on exercise. Sotatercept lowered blood volume to normal levels and increased hemoglobin, allowing greater oxygen delivery during exercise. As well, muscles seemed to be able to extract more oxygen. At rest, people's bodies maintained oxygen delivery levels as the blood volume decreased, and the heart seemed to work less hard. Cardiac o

Researchers looked at the medical records of 455 people with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) to find factors associated with getting worse. Using a machine-learning computer model, they found 11 clinical features linked to a higher chance of a worsening event, but only body mass index and red cell distribution width were statistically significantly associated with clinical worsening. About half of the patients experienced a worsening event during the study, usually with

This study from one clinic examined how well sotatercept worked in real-world patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) who also had other heart or lung conditions, such as coronary artery disease, high blood pressure, lung scarring, or COPD. After six months of treatment, patients generally needed less oxygen, walked farther in six-minute walk tests, and showed improvements in their overall risk scores. Most side effects, such as nosebleeds or increased red blood c

This study looked at a French support program designed to help people with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) start and adjust their dose of selexipag. Nurses called patients three days after patients started treatment or changed doses to monitor side effects and provide guidance. Most patients were able to reach their best individual dose within about 11 weeks, and most side effects were mild or manageable. Both patients and healthcare providers reported very high satisfa