title: Executive summary. Expert consensus statement on the diagnosis and treatment of paediatric pulmonary hypertension. The European Paediatric Pulmonary Vascular Disease Network, endorsed by ISHLT and DGPK.
abstract: : The European Paediatric Pulmonary Vascular Disease (PVD) Network is a registered, non-profit organisation that strives to define and develop effective, innovative diagnostic methods and treatment options in all forms of paediatric pulmonary hypertensive vascular disease, including specific forms such as pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH)-congenital heart disease, pulmonary hypertension (PH) associated with bronchopulmonary dysplasia, persistent PH of the newborn, and related cardiac dysfunction.
  
  
  
  The writing group members conducted searches of the PubMed/MEDLINE bibliographic database (1990-2015) and held five face-to-face meetings with votings. Clinical trials, guidelines, and reviews limited to paediatric data were searched using the terms 'pulmonary hypertensioń' and 5-10 other keywords, as outlined in the other nine articles of this special issue. Class of recommendation (COR) and level of evidence (LOE) were assigned based on European Society of Cardiology/American Heart Association definitions and on paediatric data only, or on adult studies that included >10% children.
  
  
  
  A total of 9 original consensus articles with graded recommendations (COR/LOE) were developed, and are summarised here. The topics included diagnosis/monitoring, genetics/biomarker, cardiac catheterisation, echocardiography, cardiac magnetic resonance/chest CT, associated forms of PH, intensive care unit/ventricular assist device/lung transplantation, and treatment of paediatric PAH.
  
  
  
  The multipaper expert consensus statement of the European Paediatric PVD Network provides a specific, comprehensive, detailed but practical framework for the optimal clinical care of children with PH.
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatric Cardiology and Critical Care, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany.
authors.forename: Georg
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Hansmann
authors.affiliation: Division of Paediatric Cardiology, Children's University Hospital Ulm, Ulm, Germany.
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Apitz
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatric Cardiology, Saarland University Hospital, Homburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Hashim
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Abdul-Khaliq
authors.affiliation: Blueprint Genetics, Biomedicum Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland Department of Paediatric Cardiology, Children's Hospital Helsinki, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: Tero-Pekka
authors.initials: TP
authors.lastname: Alastalo
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatric Cardiology and Critical Care, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany.
authors.forename: Phillip
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Beerbaum
authors.affiliation: Unité Médico-Chirurgicale de Cardiologie Congénital et Pédiatrique, Centre de reference Malformations Cardiaques Congénitales Complexes-M3C, Hôpital Necker Enfants Malades, APHP, Université Paris Descartes, Sorbonne Paris, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Damien
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bonnet
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatric Cardiology and Congenital Heart Disease, Heart and Diabetes Centre NRW, Bad Oeynhausen, Germany.
authors.forename: Karl-Otto
authors.initials: KO
authors.lastname: Dubowy
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatric Cardiology, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Matthias
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gorenflo
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatric Cardiology and Congenital Heart Disease, German Heart Centre Munich and Technical University, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Alfred
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hager
authors.affiliation: Perinatal Center Grosshadern, Dr. von Haunersches Children's Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hilgendorff
authors.affiliation: Division of Paediatric Cardiology, Children's University Hospital Ulm, Ulm, Germany.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kaestner
authors.affiliation: Divison of Paediatric Cardiology, Department of Paediatrics, Medical University Graz, Graz, Austria.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Koestenberger
authors.affiliation: Blueprint Genetics, Biomedicum Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland Department of Paediatric Cardiology, Children's Hospital Helsinki, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: Juha W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Koskenvuo
authors.affiliation: Division of Paediatric Cardiology, University Heart Center, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Rainer
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kozlik-Feldmann
authors.affiliation: German Heart Institute Berlin (DHZB), Unit of Cardiovascular Imaging, Department of Congenital Heart Disease and Paediatric Cardiology, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Titus
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kuehne
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatric Cardiology, University of Münster, Münster, Germany.
authors.forename: Astrid E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Lammers
authors.affiliation: Justus-Liebig-University Giessen, Pediatric Cardiology, Paediatric Heart Center, Giessen, Germany.
authors.forename: Heiner
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Latus
authors.affiliation: Paediatric Heart Center, Division of Paediatric Cardiology, University Hospital for Children and Adolescents, Medical University Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Ina
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Michel-Behnke
authors.affiliation: German Heart Institute Berlin (DHZB), Department of Congenital Heart Disease and Paediatric Cardiology, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Oliver
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Miera
authors.affiliation: National Paediatric Pulmonary Hypertension Service UK, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London, UK.
authors.forename: Shahin
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Moledina
authors.affiliation: Cardiovascular MRI Department, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London, UK.
authors.forename: Vivek
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Muthurangu
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatric Cardiology, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Joseph
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pattathu
authors.affiliation: Justus-Liebig-University Giessen, Pediatric Cardiology, Paediatric Heart Center, Giessen, Germany.
authors.forename: Dietmar
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Schranz
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiothoracic, Transplantation and Vascular Surgery, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany German Centre for Lung Research, BREATH, Hannover, Germany.
authors.forename: Gregor
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Warnecke
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatric Cardiology, German Paediatric Heart Centre, Sankt Augustin, Germany.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Zartner
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005060:Europe; D006801:Humans; D006976:Hypertension, Pulmonary / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy*; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D012955:Societies, Medical