Prevalence and Clinical Features of Pulmonary Hypertension: A Retrospective Study at Tertiary Care Hospital in Mardan

Abstract

Background: Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a progressive disorder and the condition is often undiagnosed until advanced stages, moreover limited local data available regarding etiology of disease.

Objective: To assess the prevalence and clinical features of PH and to evaluate its demographic characteristics, clinical features and associated comorbidities among patients presenting in Mardan Medical Complex.

Methods: This retrospective study was conducted at Department of Medicine, Mardan Medical Complex, Mardan from January 2022 to January 2023. A total of 185 patients were evaluated in this study, with 2 groups as transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) suggested PH and non-PH. Diagnosis of PH was based on echocardiographic findings only as limited access to Right Heart Catheterization (RHC) which is gold standard for PH diagnosis.  Relevant ICD 10 coding, ICD 127.0 for primary PH and ICD 127.2 for secondary PH was used to categorrised COPD, ILD, LHD.

Results A total of 40 patients were identified as having pulmonary hypertension (PH), the prevalence was 21.6% and  145 were non PH. The largest percentage of people studied had reached 45-59 years old (51.4%). Most PH patients were women (55.0% versus 45.0% men). The most commonly reported clinical manifestation among PH patients was dyspnea reported by 78.9% of patients, followed by fatigue 64.3% and chest pain 41.6%. COPD was significantly associated with PH compared to the non PH group (p-value <0.05).

Conclusion: Approximately one-fifth of study’s population had PH, with COPD and advancing age as key risk factors. Similarly TTE-based screening provides valuable insights.