[Pulmonary arterial hypertension and chronic obstructive bronchopneumopathy]

Sooner or later, chronic obstructive lung disease becomes complicated with pulmonary arterial hypertension, largely responsible for chronic cor pulmonale. Its principal cause is an increase in pulmonary resistance due to chronic hypoxia. There is no non-invasive method that can be used to measure pulmonary arterial pressure (PAP) with accuracy. In the course of chronic obstructive lung disease PAP increases slowly, by about 0.5 to 0.6 mmHg per year. As mortality factor, it is the second major variable after FEV1. The usefulness of specific vasodilators has not yet been demonstrated.