Importance of heart failure duration for development of pulmonary hypertension in advanced heart failure

Pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) is critical when evaluating candidacy for advanced heart failure (HF) therapies, but risk factors for elevated PVR are not well studied. We hypothesized that HF duration would be associated with elevated PVR.

Danish single-center registry of consecutive in- and outpatients undergoing right heart catheterization as part of advanced HF work up. The relation between HF duration and PVR was estimated by regression analysis. Finally, the relation between PVR and long-term mortality was assessed by Cox proportional hazards regression and Kaplan-Meier analyses.

A total of 549 patients (77% men, median age 54 (43-61) years, median HF duration 1.6 years (0.1-7.1)) were included. Univariate linear regression displayed an association between longer HF duration and increasing PVR (p = 0.014). PVR > 3 WU was present in 92 patients (17%) who were older (median p < 0.001) and had longer HF duration (p = 0.03). HF duration (per 1 year increase) did not predict PVR > 3 WU after adjustment for covariables (OR 1.00; p = 0.99). During a mean follow-up time of 4.5 years, there were 240 (44%) deaths. Increasing PVR was associated with elevated all-cause mortality risk (adjusted HR 1.24; p < 0.001). PVR > 3 WU was associated with higher mortality (adjusted HR 1.49; p = 0.027).

Longer duration of HF was associated with higher PVR in patients with advanced HF, but this association disappeared in multivariate analyses. Longer HF duration per se likely does not cause elevated PVR and should not discourage evaluation for heart transplantation.