title: [Surgical treatment of post-embolism pulmonary hypertension].
abstract: Pulmonary hypertension is a serous condition which, after a long history as an orphan disease, has raised renewed interest due to the development of efficacious therapeutic options including lung transplantation and continuous infusion of prostacycline. Bilateral endarteriectomy of the pulmonary arteries is another possibility for post-embolism pulmonary hypertension. The procedure is complex and must be performed in conditions of cardiac arrest and deep hypothermia but, unlike transplantation, provides definitive cure. Recognizing the post-embolic nature of pulmonary hypertension is not simple because old episodes of venous thrombosis or embolus migration are not found in 50% of patients. Segmentary defects on the perfusion scintigraphy contrasting with the homogeneous respiratory scintigraphy is the primary diagnostic feature. Lesions must be located in a main trunk or at the origin of lobular or segmentary branches to be accessible to endarteriectomy. An antero-posterior and lateral angiogram of each lung and a multiple-array helicoidal angioscan performed with a precise protocol by an experienced team are needed to identify the localization of the lesions. If the pulmonary resistance determined at right catheterism is correlated with anatomic obstruction, the risk of mortality of pulmonary endarteriectomy is low, offering patients a significant chance for normal or nearly normal cardiorespiratory function.
authors.affiliation: Département de Chirurgie Thoracique Vasculaire et Transplantation Cardio-Pulmonaire, Hôpital Marie-Lannelongue, Université Paris-Sud, 133, avenue de la Résistance, 92350 Le Plessis-Robinson. pdartevelle@ccml.com
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Dartevelle
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fadel
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chapelier
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mussot
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cerrina
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Leroy-Ladurie
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Lehouerou
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Humbert
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Sitbon
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Parent
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Simonneau
mesh_terms: D004691:Endarterectomy / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D006976:Hypertension, Pulmonary / Q000209:etiology* / Q000601:surgery*; D011655:Pulmonary Embolism / Q000150:complications*; D012307:Risk Factors; D014655:Vascular Resistance