Successful treatment of chronic pulmonary thromboembolism by long-term intermittent administration of milrinone, a phosphodiesterase-ill inhibitor.
We report a 71-year-old man with right heart failure due to chronic pulmonary thromboembolism. Oral medications failed to control the condition but he was later successfully treated with intermittent administration of a PDE-III inhibitor for 2 years. Such therapy did not result in exacerbation of right heart failure but improvement of ANP/BNP levels to 32/104 pg/ml from a pretreatment value of 61/158 pg/ml, although no improvement was noted in pulmonary artery pressure or cardiac index. Intermittent administration of PDE-III inhibitors is a useful treatment for patients with right heart failure resistant to oral agents.
Sonoda
Koichiro
K
Nagasaki Memorial Hospital, Nagasaki.
Ikeda
Satoshi
S
Miyahara
Yoshiyuki
Y
Kohno
Shigeru
S
D015105:3',5'-Cyclic-AMP Phosphodiesterases / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*; D000368:Aged; D054684:Cyclic Nucleotide Phosphodiesterases, Type 3; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D020105:Milrinone / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D010726:Phosphodiesterase Inhibitors / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D011655:Pulmonary Embolism / Q000188:drug therapy*; D012074:Remission Induction; D013997:Time Factors
D010726:Phosphodiesterase Inhibitors; D015105:3',5'-Cyclic-AMP Phosphodiesterases; D054684:Cyclic Nucleotide Phosphodiesterases, Type 3; D020105:Milrinone