It can begin its development among anyone of any age, including children, with the highest percentage occurring among women between the ages of 20 and 40. In recent years, statistics have also shown that there are as many as about 1,000 diagnoses annually in the United States.
Some speculation indicates that primary pulmonary hypertension may be caused by the sensitivity of the blood vessels to Raynaud's syndrome, appetite suppressants, cocaine, HIV, scleroderma, or systemic lupus erythematosus. If you are currently taking appetite suppressants or cocaine, you are advised to wean yourself off following the advice of your doctor.
The symptoms typical of primary pulmonary hypertension are so variable that the condition is difficult to diagnose. They can include progressively short breath or hyperventilating, fatigue, weakness, fainting spells, lightheadedness, dizziness, coughing up blood, chest pain, cyanosis (a blue discoloration of the lips, feet, hands, or other body parts), and swollenness. Fatigue typically manifests during the first onset of PPH.
Possible treatments can vary widely from patient to patient and include the following: anticoagulants; diuretics; supplemental oxygen that may be needed around the clock; calcium channel blocking drugs; intravenous prostacyclin, which is delivered via a portable battery-powered infusion pump; medication to help the heart's right ventricle function better; and lung/heart-lung transplantation, which would first need approval at a lung transplantation center.
New treatments for primary pulmonary hypertension are still being tested. The innovations, which have already come about, should offer you some hope of a return to normal functioning, especially if you have no history of heart failure and have only been diagnosed with PPH after the age of 40.
The first step to treating primary pulmonary hypertension, of course, is to be able to detect it. For this reason, you should search carefully for a physician who has the latest technology for this task and therefore has a good chance of diagnosing PPH when it is in its early stages. You cannot afford to take any chances on when PPH may pose a sudden threat to your life, and you deserve nothing less than to find the best care there is.
Do not hesitate to take necessary actions today. Your future and that of your loved ones may depend on it.
In July of 1997, researchers at the Mayo Clinic and Mayo Foundation reported 24 cases of rare valvular heart disease in women who took the fen-phen combination. The FDA had received nine reports of this phenomenon and subsequently received 66 additional reports. Most of these were associated with fen-phen, but some involved patients who were taking only fenfluramine, or the related drug, dexfenfluramine.
Fenfluramine, manufactured and marketed under the brand name Pondimin by American Home Products Corp., entered the US market in 1973. When used alone, the drug produced only moderate results which were often overshadowed by distressing side effects that included drowsiness and changes in mood.
The addition of the stimulant phentermine compensated for those undesirable side effects and produced greater weight loss. In 1992, based upon the results of a study conducted by Michael Weintraub and reported in the Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, physicians began to prescribe this combination off-label (it was not approved by the FDA).
As the patent on Pondimin (fenfluramine) neared its expiration, Redux (dexfenfluramine), which had already been marketed in Europe, was approved.
Dexfenfluramine was manufactured by Interneuron Pharmaceuticals and marketed under the brand name Redux by Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories, a subsidiary of American Home Products Corp.
Based upon reports of valvular heart disease and primary pulmonary hypertension, cases that involved mostly women who had received this combination, the Food and Drug Administration requested that fenfluramine and dexfenfluramine be withdrawn from the market in September of 1997.
The FDA did not request that phentermine, the third drug widely used for the treatment of obesity, and the drug used in combination with fenfluramine, be withdrawn.
Echocardiograms, which reveal information related to the structure and functioning of heart valves, were abnormal in a much higher than expected number of the patients tested. Approximately 30 percent had abnormal findings, even though they had no symptoms. The abnormalities typically involve the aortic and mitral valves of the heart.
The use of fenfluramine leads to weight loss because the drug fosters increased levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin, which is involved with a number of brain functions. In this case, its role is in producing satiety (a feeling of fullness).
As of 2004, fen-phen was no longer widely available. In 2005, American Layer magazine reported that more than 50,000 product liability lawsuits had been filed on behalf of people who alleged that they had suffered damages after taking fen-phen.
PPH (Primary Pulmonary Hypertension), a disease that thickens the capillaries in the lungs and impairs breathing and for which there is no cure, was linked to derivatives of fenfluramine by the IPPHS (International Primary Pulmonary Hypertension Study.
Nick Johnson has sinced written about articles on various topics from Obesity, Health and Class Action. Nick Johnson is lead counsel with Johnson Law Group, a law firm that represents cases and matters involving Fen-Phen and Primary Pulmonary Hypertension (PPH). For a free case evaluation, contact Johnson Law Group in Houston, TX at 1-888-311-5522 or visit. Nick Johnson's top article generates over 27100 views. to your Favourites.