One of the contraindications of EECP is Pulmonary Hypertension.Pulmonary hypertension is high blood pressure in the pulmonary arteries in the lungs. With symptoms typical of more common diseases, and a variety of causes, this potentially fatal disease is complex to diagnose and treat.
Causes of Pulmonary Hypertension
Pulmonary hypertension can have no known cause, can be genetic, can be caused by drugs or toxins, or can occur because of an underlying disease or issue, including:
Congenital heart disease Left heart disease Blood clots in the lungs (pulmonary embolism) Lung disease HIV Liver disease Sickle cell disease Metabolic disorders Sleep disorders, such as sleep apnea Connective tissue diseases, such as scleroderma Diagnosis and Types of Pulmonary Hypertension Properly diagnosing this disease, as well as classifying the exact type of pulmonary hypertension, is critical for the best treatment options.
Types of Pulmonary Hypertension include:
Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH): A disease of the blood vessels of the lungs, which become thick and narrow, causing elevation in pressure.
Pulmonary venous hypertension (PVH): An elevation in blood pressure in the pulmonary veins, most often caused by congestive heart failure.
Chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH): Pulmonary hypertension associated with the body’s inability to clear blood clots from the lungs (known as chronic thromboembolic obstruction). The disease is often present without any known history of previous pulmonary embolism.
Exercise-induced pulmonary hypertension: A condition in which the pulmonary arteries are normal at rest, but increase abnormally with exertion.
The earlier a patient is diagnosed with pulmonary hypertension, the better the chances for an optimal treatment solution. With shortness of breath being the most common symptom of pulmonary hypertension, it’s easy to get misdiagnosed.
We have multiple techniques to diagnose pulmonary hypertension, including:
Right-heart catheterization Pulmonary function test (to measure lung function) Ventilation/perfusion scan (to measure air and blood flow to the lungs) Electrocardiogram (EKG) Blood test Chest X-ray Stress test
