The Changing Landscape of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension in the Adult with Congenital Heart Disease

Pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with congenital heart disease (PAH-CHD) is a common type of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and a frequent complication of congenital heart disease (CHD). PAH-CHD represents a heterogeneous patient population and it is important to distinguish between the underlying cardiac defects considering the prognostic and therapeutic implications. Improved interventional techniques have enabled repair or palliation of most cardiac defects, though a substantial number of patients remain at high risk for PAH after closure. Traditionally, the treatment and management of PAH-CHD patients has been limited to palliative and supportive care, and based on expert opinion rather than clinical trials. Recently, however, the availability of advanced PAH-specific treatment has opened up a new field for the clinical management of this condition. Nevertheless, there is limited evidence on the optimal therapeutic approach for PAH-CHD. Herein, we discuss the current and novel therapeutic options for PAH-CHD as well as highlight several challenges in the clinical management at present.