Spotlight: Pulmonary Hypertension and Cor Pulmonale

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is high blood pressure in the blood vessels that supply the lungs (pulmonary arteries). It differs from regular hypertension where pressure in blood vessels throughout the body is higher than it should be, as with PH, the blood vessels specifically in the lungs are affected. It's a serious condition that can damage the right side of the heart. Cor Pulmonale is a condition, perhaps little known to those outside the medical profession, that causes the right hand side of the heart to fail. The name comes from the Latin ‘Cor' (heart) and Pulmonalis (lungs). In ...