ATS
Meeting Serves as Useful Measure
Of Rising Interest in Pulmonary Hypertension
This year’s meeting of the American
Thoracic Society (ATS) was exciting from several vantage
points, including the fact that it was the 100th anniversary
of the ATS, a striking achievement for this venerable
organization. The ATS meeting is the largest gathering
of pulmonary and critical care specialists in the
world. For those of us
involved with or closely following developments in
pulmonary hypertension
(PH), the meeting was also notable because of the
extensive focus devoted to PH at this meeting, in
scientific sessions, debates,
abstracts, and original research. As a moderator for
some of these sessions, I was fortunate enough to
personally become part of the lively and challenging
discussions, including the controversies that fueled
the debates.
Evidence of the growing interest in
PH at this meeting can be quantified if one likes
to keep track statistically of such trends. The ATS
web site, for example, lists 322 abstracts on PH alone.
This number is a good barometer for the rising interest
in PH, especially when one considers that in 2004
the ATS had 272 abstracts on PH featured in its program.
One of the abstracts in the 2005 session concerning
the relationship of hypoxemia to pulmonary artery
pressure in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH)
was presented by Duke University investigators, including
Victor F. Tapson, MD, my predecessor as Editor-in-Chief
of Advances in Pulmonary Hypertension,
and his colleague, Richard C. Redman, MD.
Although PH associated with hypoxemic
lung disease is a common problem, it is
one of those areas where we need more information
to more precisely identify how it should be classified.
As their abstract and poster pointed out, little data
exist regarding hypoxemia in patients with PAH. While
it might appear intuitive, a clear correlation between
hypoxemia and pulmonary artery pressure in this disease
has not been
shown, yet further characterization of this relationship
may provide insight into the pathophysiology and clinical
manifestations of PAH. As the conclusion notes:
patients with severe PAH were significantly more hypoxemic
than patients with mild to moderate PAH. Drs Tapson
and Redman conclude that hypoxemia is generally more
pronounced as PAH becomes more severe and may be more
important in the pathophysiology of PAH than previously
appreciated.
For more insights on this relationship,
I encourage readers to review the information in an
article by Robert Schilz, DO, PhD, in this issue,
as well as the Roundtable discussion chaired by Richard
Channick, MD. We would like to express our appreciation
to Dr Channick for serving as the Guest Editor of
this issue and bringing together the editorial content
focusing on PH associated with lung diseases.
Vallerie V. McLaughlin, MD
Editor-in-Chief
Articles
Advances in Pulmonary Hypertension,
Summer 2005, Vol. 4, No. 2
Editor-in-Chief Richard Channick, MD
Professor of Clinical Medicine
Pulmonary and Critical Care Division
University of California, San Diego Medical Center
San Diego, California
Immediate Past Editor Ronald J. Oudiz, MD
Associate Professor of Medicine
The David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Director, Liu Center for Pulmonary Hypertension
LA Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center
Editor-in-Chief Elect Erika Berman Rosenzweig, MD
Director, Pulmonary
Hypertension Center, Columbia University Medical Center Associate
Professor of Clinical Pediatrics (in Medicine)
Associate Editors
Kristin Highland, MD
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, Allergy and Sleep Medicine
Medical University Of Carolina
Francisco Soto, MD, MS
Director, Pulmonary Hypertension Program
Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine
Medical College of Wisconsin
Todd Bull, MD
Associate Professor of Medicine
Division of Pulmonary Sciences and Critical Care Medicine
University of Colorado Health Sciences Center
Robert Schilz, DO, PhD
Medical Director of Lung
Transplantation and Pulmonary Vascular Disease
University Hospital of Cleveland
Case Western Reserve University
Cleveland, Ohio
Publisher
Pulmonary Hypertension Association
Carl Hicks, Board Chair
Rino Aldrighetti, President
Sherrie Borden, Vice President, Medical and Patient Education
Publishing Staff Managing Editor
Deborah L. McBride
McBride Strategic Services
mcbridedeb@aol.com
P: 773-348-5455
C: 312-307-5455
Design Director
Michael McClain
Advances in Pulmonary Hypertension is circulated to
cardiologists, pulmonologists, rheumatologists and other selected
physicians by the Pulmonary Hypertension Association. The contents of the articles are independently determined by the Editor
and the Editorial Advisory Board.
Editorial Mission Advances in Pulmonary Hypertension is committed
to help physicians in their clinical decision
making by informing them of important
trends affecting their practice. Analyzing the
impact of new findings and covering current
information in the peer-reviewed literature,
Advances in Pulmonary Hypertension is published
four times a year. Advances in Pulmonary
Hypertension is the official journal
of the Pulmonary Hypertension Association.
Each article in this journal has been reviewed
and approved by members of the Editorial
Advisory Board.
Editorial Board
Charles Burger, MD
Medical Director, PH Clinic
Mayo Clinic
Jacksonville, FL
Karen Fagan, M.D. Chief, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine University of South Alabama
Eli Gabbay, MD
Lung Transplant Unit
Royal Perth Hospital
Nick Kim, M.D.
Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine
University of California San Diego
Deborah Jo Levine, M.D.
University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio
San Antonio, TX
Omar Minai, MD
Dept of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine
Myung Park, MD
Associate Professor of Medicine
Division of Pulmonary Sciences and Critical Care Medicine
University of Colorado Health Sciences Center
Fernando Torres, MD Director Pulmonary Hypertension Clinic
UTSW Medical Center Dallas
University Hospital
Glenna Traiger, RN, MSN
Pulmonary & Critical Care
Pulmonary Hypertension CNS
University of California Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA
R. James White, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor of Medicine, Pharmacology & Physiology
University of Rochester, Division of Pulmonary and CCM
Roham Zamanian, MD
Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine
Stanford University Medical Center
The
information provided on the PHA website is provided for general information
only. It is not intended as legal, medical or other professional
advice, and should not be relied upon as a substitute for consultations
with qualified professionals who are familiar with your individual
needs.
ATS
Meeting Serves as Useful Measure 
