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Diseases of the lung and pulmonary circulation

The diseases of the lung and pulmonary circulation can affect the heart and have been broadly grouped as pulmonary heart disease or cor pulmonale. In pulmonary heart disease there is alteration in the function or structure of the right ventricle caused by an abnormality in the structure or function of the lungs or pulmonary vasculature.For the purpose of this chapter, pulmonary embolism, diseases affecting the pulmonary vasculature and those affecting the lung parenchyma will be considered separately.

Pulmonary embolism is the most common cause of pulmonary beart disease. Venous thomboembolism refers to a condition where blood clots from the legs or arms travel to the lungs. The passage of clots from venous circulation to the lung vasculature is referred to as pulmonary embolism. If the clots produce injury to Ihe lung parenchyma ,the condition is called as pulmonary infarction.

The pulmonary vasculature can be affected in large number of conditions resulting in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). A patient who develops PAH withbut evidence for heart, lung, or respiratory disease as a contributory cause is called as "piimary pulmonary hypertension" (PPH). In a large number of conditions there is a well known cause for PAH and they are refeued as "secondary pulmonary hypertension".A number of parenchymal disorders like chronic bronchitis, bronchial asthma,emphysema, interstitial fibrosis, granuloma etc., can affect the air passages or alveoli of the lung and can produce acute or chronic pulmonruy heart disease cornillonly referred as cor pulmonale. .

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