title: Significance of a plasma D-dimer test in patients with primary pulmonary hypertension.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  D-dimer, a degradation product of fibrin, has been increasingly used as a marker or prognostic factor in various thrombotic diseases.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To assess the significance of a d-dimer test in patients with primary pulmonary hypertension (PPH).
  
  
  METHODS
  Fourteen patients with PPH (12 women and 2 men) aged 25 to 68 years (mean +/- SD age, 50 +/- 14 years) entered the study. Plasma d-dimer was determined by Miniquant assay (Biopool International; Venture, CA) 3 +/- 5 months after the disease onset, and patients were followed up for 1 year. We compared the d-dimer levels to the demographic, clinical, and hemodynamic data of the patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  D-dimer levels were positively correlated with New York Heart Association classification (r = 0.59, p = 0.01) and pulmonary artery pressure (r = 0.43, p = 0.03) and were negatively correlated with oxygen saturation (r = - 0.45, p = 0.03) and 6-min walk distance (r = - 0.49, p = 0.04). One-year survival was also negatively correlated with d-dimer (point-biserial r = - 0.71, p = 0.004), with a higher d-dimer value associated with poorer survival. No significant correlations were found between d-dimer values and sex, age, diffusing capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide, or cardiac index.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  D-dimer levels may have a role in the evaluation of patients with PPH. This simple, noninvasive test may be helpful for identifying patients who are at a higher risk for severe disease.
authors.affiliation: Pulmonary Institute, Rabin Medical Center, Petach-Tiqwa, Israel.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Shitrit
authors.forename: Daniele
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bendayan
authors.forename: Ariella
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bar-Gil-Shitrit
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Huerta
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rudensky
authors.forename: Gershon
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Fink
authors.forename: Mordechai R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Kramer
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D005573:Formycins / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D006976:Hypertension, Pulmonary / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012265:Ribonucleotides / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D005573:Formycins; D012265:Ribonucleotides; C020332:formycin diphosphate