[Pulmonary hypertension in end-stage renal disease: three case reports].

HISTORY: Within three months, three patients with end-stage renal disease presented for evaluation of pulmonary hypertension (PH): a 72-year-old woman (case 1), a 67-year-old patient (case 2) and a 75-year-old patient (case 3), each with increasing dyspnea (WHO functional class III). INVESTIGATIONS: In all three cases, there was echocardiographic evidence of right heart failure; right heart catheterization was completed before and after dialysis. In case 1, we found a postcapillary PH (PH group 2 - PH with left heart diseases/diastolic dysfunction). Case 2 also showed a postcapillary PH and a high cardiac output of 9.7 l/min. In case 3, unmasked after dialysis, a precapillary, pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH - group 1) was detected. TREATMENT AND COURSE: In patient 1, no relevant improvement of symptoms was observed, despite optimized cardiac therapy. There was a significant clinical improvement in patient 2 after surgical reduction of the arteriovenous shunt. In patient 3, relevant clinical and hemodynamic improvement was seen under treatment with bosentan.
CONCLUSION: These cases confirm the role of right heart catheterization in the differential diagnosis of unclear PH in patients with end-stage renal failure. Moreover, the three cases point to three different causes. Specific therapies can result in significant symptomatic improvement. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.