Pulmonary Hypertension in Elders Usually Is Not Idiopathic Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension

Pulmonary hypertension is being diagnosed in a growing number of older adults, but whether this trend is due to pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH; pulmonary hypertension not secondary to left heart disease or intrinsic lung disease) or alternate causes is unknown. Because therapies for PAH are unique, determining the etiology of pulmonary hypertension is important.

Investigators at Vanderbilt University examined 246 older patients (age, ≥65) who were referred for initial evaluation of pulmonary hypertension during 15 years. Most patients were women (78%), and mean age was 73. Left heart disease (WHO group 2) was the most common cause of pulmonary hypertension (28%), with most such patients having preserved systolic function. PAH was diagn…