Xing Chen, Wu Zhou, Qinghua Hu, Lingjin Huang

Congenital Heart Disease, Vol.14, No.3, pp. 396-402, 2019, DOI:10.1111/chd.12733

Abstract Objective: This study explores the role of the Notch3‐HES5 signal pathway in mono‐ crotaline‐induced pulmonary hypertension (PH) using rat models.
Method: Sprague Dawley rats (n = 45) were randomly grouped into normal group, control group, and model group. Rats in the model group were used to establish the PH rat model. Four weeks after model establishment, right catheterization was used to measure the mean pulmonary arterial pressure (mPAP) and right ventricular sys‐ tolic pressure (RVSP) to analyze hemodynamic changes. The severity of PH was as‐ sessed by the right ventricular hypertrophy index (RVHI) and percentage of media thickness (MT%). The… More >

Mariana M. Clavé¹, Nair Y. Maeda², Ana M. Thomaz¹, Sergio P. Bydlowski³, Antonio A. Lopes¹

Congenital Heart Disease, Vol.14, No.2, pp. 246-255, 2019, DOI:10.1111/chd.12688

Abstract Background: Ideally, vasodilator therapies for pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) should have a favorable impact on markers of vascular dysfunction, in addition to their known effects on hemodynamics, cardiac function, and patient’s physical capacity.
Methods: We analyzed circulating (plasma) markers of endothelial and platelet activation/dys‐ function (enzyme‐linked immunoassays) in the specific setting of advanced PAH associated with congenital heart disease, during the course of sildenafil and tadalafil therapies. Thirty‐one patients were enrolled (age 10‐54 years), most of them with chronic hypoxemia and elevated hematocrit. Drugs were administered orally for 6 months (sildenafil [n = 16], 20 mg t.i.d.; tada‐ lafil [n… More >

Ranjit Philip¹, Jason Nathaniel Johnson^1,2, Ronak Naik¹, Dai Kimura^1,3, Umar Boston¹, Sandeep Chilakala¹, Benjamin Hendrickson¹, Benjamin Rush Waller¹, Shyam Sathanandam¹

Congenital Heart Disease, Vol.14, No.1, pp. 37-41, 2019, DOI:10.1111/chd.12702

Abstract The hemodynamic effects of a patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) are well known including systemic hypoperfusion and volume overload on the left ventricle. This article aims to provide a review of the long-standing effect of a hemodynamically significant PDA on the pulmonary vasculature and the role of cardiac catheterization in preterm infants with a PDA and pulmonary hypertension. More >