Pulmonary Hypertension: A Case Study

High blood pressure in the lungs is called pulmonary hypertension or pulmonary arterial hypertension. Pulmonary hypertension is high blood pressure in the arteries starting from the heart towards the lungs. Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is defined as a sustained elevation of the pulmonary arterial pressure to greater than 25 mmHg at rest or greater than 30 mmHg following exercise, with a mean pulmonary-capillary wedge pressure (an indirect measure of left atrial pressure) of less than 15 mmHg (Loscalzo, 2005). Someone with PAH, the right side of their heart has to work harder to push blood through narrowed arteries in the lungs. Pulmonary arterial hypertension is a chronic and life-changing disease that can lead to right heart failure if left untreated (Pulmonary Hypertension Association, 2014). There is a primary pulmonary hypertension which means that when it is not accompanied by underlying heart and lung disease or other illnesses. Whereas, secondary pulmonary hypertension is when there is a pre-existing disease that triggered the pulmonary hypertension. That is because it is secondary to another problem that was originally present. Some disorders that will trigger PH
Even though anyone can be diagnosed with PH, there are certain risk factors that make others more likely to be diagnosed than others. Based on the person’s family history, it seems to be that if there are two or more members in the family that have PH, there is a PH-causing gene mutation in the lineage (Pulmonary Hypertension Association, 2014). Women who already have PH and become pregnant have a much higher risk of mortality. Obesity itself is not a risk factor, but when it is combined with sleep apnea, mild PH can occur. This can occur because the oxygen levels fall while the person is sleeping (Pulmonary Hypertension Association,