title: Acute pulmonary hypertension and right ventricular failure in adult respiratory distress syndrome.
abstract: The severity of acute pulmonary hypertension (APHT) in acute respiratory distress syndrome was examined in 20 patients. All patients had significant APHT (mean pressure 40.6 +/- 6.3 mmHg) on admission to the intensive care unit. There was evidence of right ventricular (RV) failure, with a right ventricular stroke work index (RVSWI) of 9.20 +/- 3.3 g.m/m2 and a central venous pressure of 18.0 +/- 4.0 mmHg. The RV afterload, i.e. pulmonary artery elastance (Ea = stroke volume/peak pulmonary artery pressure), was raised. Stroke volume could not be predicted from Ea or RVSWI alone, but regression analysis indicated that the ratio of RVSWI/Ea (i.e. ventriculo-arterial coupling) could account for 88% of the stroke volume.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anaesthesiology, University of Stellenbosch, Tygerberg, W. Cape.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Coetzee
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Rousseau
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Lahner
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D006801:Humans; D006976:Hypertension, Pulmonary / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology; D008875:Middle Aged; D012128:Respiratory Distress Syndrome / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology; D016278:Ventricular Function, Right / Q000502:physiology*