Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a lethal complication in connective tissue diseases (CTDs) with varying frequency of occurrence; the highest incidence is in systemic sclerosis. Data for PAH screening by echocardiography in other CTDs are not strong. Should we only investigate symptomatic patients or perform regular screening for PAH in CTDs?
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 print issues and online access
$209.00 per year
only $17.42 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
References
Steen, V. D. & Medsger, T. A. Changes in causes of death in systemic sclerosis, 1972–2002. Ann. Rheum. Dis. 66, 940–944 (2007).
Muangchan, C., Canadian Scleroderma Research Group, Baron, M. & Pope, J. The 15% rule in scleroderma: the frequency of severe organ complications in systemic sclerosis. A systematic review. J. Rheumatol. 40, 1545–1556 (2013).
Hachulla, E. & Denton, C. P. Early intervention in pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with systemic sclerosis: an essential component of disease management. Eur. Respir. Rev. 19, 314–320 (2010).
Galie, N. et al. Guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of pulmonary hypertension. The Task Force for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Pulmonary Hypertension of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) and the European Respiratory Society (ERS), endorsed by the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT). Eur. Heart J. 30, 2493–2537 (2009).
Steen, V. D., Lucas, M., Fertig, N. & Medsger, T. A. Jr. Pulmonary arterial hypertension and severe pulmonary fibrosis in systemic sclerosis patients with a nucleolar antibody. J. Rheumatol. 34, 2230–2235 (2007).
Condliffe, R. et al. Connective tissue disease-associated pulmonary arterial hypertension in the modern treatment era. Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. 179, 151–157 (2009).
Khanna, D. et al. Recommendations for screening and detection of connective-tissue disease associated pulmonary arterial hypertension. Arthritis Rheum. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/art.38172.
Coghlan, J. G. et al. Evidence-based detection of pulmonary arterial hypertension in systemic sclerosis: the DETECT study. Ann. Rheum. Dis. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/annrheumdis-2013-203301.
Yoshida, S. Pulmonary arterial hypertension in connective tissue diseases. Allergol. Int. 60, 405–409 (2011).
Arcasoy, S. M. et al. Echocardiographic assessment of pulmonary hypertension in patients with advanced lung disease. Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. 167, 735–740 (2003).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Competing interests
J. E. Pope has acted as a consultant for and received grant support from Actelion.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Pope, J. To screen or not to screen for PAH in connective tissue diseases?. Nat Rev Rheumatol 9, 699–700 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrrheum.2013.167
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrrheum.2013.167