Abstract
Object This study was undertaken to investigate the frequency of pulmonary hypertension (PH), and clinical parameters associated with PH in patients with idiopathic interstitial pneumonias (IIPs) and collagen vascular disease-associated interstitial pneumonias (CVD-IPs).
Patients and Methods Retrospective analyses were performed in 163 consecutively enrolled patients (78 IIPs and 85 CVD-IPs) who were being evaluated for PH by Doppler echocardiography. PH was defined as an estimated systolic pulmonary artery pressure (sPAP) of ≥40 mmHg. The frequency of PH was evaluated and clinical parameters were compared between patients with PH and those without PH.
Results Among patients successfully evaluated for sPAP by echocardiography, 20 of 70 (28%) patients with IIPs and 17 of 80 (21%) patients with CVD-IPs had PH. Among patients with IIP and CVD-IP, those with PH were more frequently treated with supplemental oxygen. Patients with IIP who had PH tended to be older and had decreased % diffusion capacity of carbon monoxide (%DLCO). Additionally, in patients with IIP, sPAP was negatively correlated with %DLCO. However, this association was not found in patients with CVD-IP. Patients with CVD-IP who had PH were predominantly male.
Conclusion PH was frequently observed in patients with both IIPs (28%) and CVD-IPs (21%) in the chronic phase of the disease. PH should be evaluated in patients with IPs who need supplemental oxygen, IIP patients with decreased diffusing capacity, and in patients with CVD-IP.
