September 2025 PVRI Community Call with Grazyna Kwapiszewska, Slaven Crnkovic and Athiththan Yogeswaran

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a common condition among women of childbearing age (WCBA) and is associated with adverse outcomes during pregnancy. However, there is currently a lack of studies that provide a detailed epidemiological characterization of this condition. This study aimed to delineate the global burden of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) among women of childbearing age (WCBA) from 1990 to 2021. 

This exploratory analysis assessed whether plasma biomarkers predict the response to switching from phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors (PDE5is) to the soluble guanylate cyclase stimulator riociguat in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension. Selected biomarkers at baseline and their changes to Week 24 were evaluated in patients with and without a favorable response to riociguat in two trials: RESPITE, in which patients with an inadequate response to PDE5i were switched to riociguat; and REPLACE, in which patients at intermediate risk of 1-year mortality despite a PDE5i were randomized to remain on PDE5i or were switched to riociguat.

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in intermediate-risk patients poses a challenge for clinicians, particularly in determining the optimal timing for escalating pharmacological treatment. We conducted a multicenter cross-sectional study that analyzed data from the Colombian Pulmonary Hypertension Network (HAPredCO) on patients diagnosed with PAH. 

Awareness of health disparities that exist across different self-identified racial and ethnic groups are essential to developing interventions that improve the quality of care of patients with rare diseases such as pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). We sought to determine whether there are important differences in clinical characteristics and illness severity at the time of PAH diagnosis among different racial/ethnic groups.