What Is PPH Or PAH?
Primary Pulmonary Hypertension - Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension
PPH is very different than ordinary pulmonary hypertension, which is high blood pressure. In PPH, the high blood pressure is in the arteries, lungs and heart. Our clients have PPH (or PAH). PPH and PAH are the same thing. Since we are PPH specialists we represent individuals who have been diagnosed with PPH due to Fen Phen. PPH is a condition where the pulmonary arteries become tight, thick and stiff. This results in a lessened or restricted blood flow to the heart and lungs. This condition is different than a normal person, where the blood vessels that travel from the lungs to the heart and vice versa are open and elastic.
What happens is that when blood travels through the lungs, it receives oxygen to transmit to the body. In a PPH/ PAH diagnosed individual, the blood vessels in the lungs or the pulmonary vessels become restricted and narrow, allowing less oxygen to travel through to the body and to the heart, which in turn, makes it more difficult for the right side of the heart to pump the necessary blood to both lungs.
The more severe the case the more the likelihood of a more restricted blood flow which limits the amount of oxygen from the heart and lungs to the rest of the body, resulting in fatigue, tiredness and other similar symptoms.
The heart has to work harder and pump harder against the high pressures caused by the restricted blood flow. Over time, the heart walls begin to thicken and the right side of the heart becomes enlarged, resulting in less and less blood flowing through the lungs, with less oxygen flowing to the body.
In a PPH individual, the right atrium and right ventricle of the heart becomes enlarged and the walls thicken.
We specialize in representing individuals who have been diagnosed with PPH/ PAH from Fen Phen diet medications. All of our clients find it difficult to complete simple tasks such as climbing up a flight of stairs and suffer from dizziness, fainting, shortness of breath, chest pain, fatigue at all times, swollen ankles and legs, irregular heartbeat and swollen abdomen.
How is PPH/ PAH diagnosed?
Your doctor takes many tests, including pulmonary function, tests, echocardiogram, chest x-ray, blood tests, VQ lung scan, which measures breathing and circulation in all areas of the lungs.
To confirm these tests, a pulmonologist will order a right heart catheterization. This test confirms the diagnosis and can grade the class or severity of the PPH condition. This test absolutely verifies a PPH diagnosis. It will only be performed if all the preliminary tests have shown results which indicate PPH/ PAH.
If you have PPH and you believe it was caused by diet medications, please contact our law offices at 800-718-4658. We and our partners have been representing PPH victims for over 15 years from coast to coast. Our law firms have recovered hundreds of millions of dollars on behalf of Fen Phen PPH victims.
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