TREATMENT OF PULMONARY ARTERIAL HYPERTENSION

Objective: To review data published about therapy for pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Method: We researched the scientific literature based on the databases EMBASE, PubMed, Cochrane, drug reports, guidebooks and textbooks. Results: There exist common criteria in the scientific community of how to treat PAH based on a general pharmacological therapy (diuretics, calcium antagonists, anticoagulants) that established a basis for using a specific therapy against PAH (prostanoids, endothelin receptor antagonists and phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitors). Conclusions: This is a pathology with a high morbi-mortality whose treatment produces a high impact on public healthcare's budget. However, all the pharmacological tools are nothing more than a palliative therapy that does not even cure the disease, because of that the new therapeutic strategies are aimed at reverting the causes.