PPH NEWS is an education-based resource site that provides information on the health issues surrounding Primary Pulmonary Hypertension (PPH), including what it is, the symptoms, diagnoses, and treatment options.
This website also provides resource to learn more about your legal rights and remedies if you or someone you know has developed PPH due to the use of diet drugs such as Fen Phen.

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Diagnosing PPH

PPH is often missed during a normal medical examination because the symptoms, especially in the early stages, can be very subtle. As well, many of these symptoms can indicate medical problems that affect the heart and lungs other than Primary Pulmonary Hypertension. PPH is diagnosed only after several possible causes are excluded. Typically, additional tests are needed to positively diagnose PPH. It can often take up to three years from the time that the sufferer displays the earliest symptoms to the time that an accurate diagnosis can be made.

One of the ways to detect the presence of PPH is through an echocardiogram, which is an ultrasonic device that exams a patient's heart. The echocardiogram uses sound waves to measure the size and shape of the heart and surrounding tissues. An echocardiogram is an especially good idea for fen-phen users who may be at risk for PPH or heart valve defect.

Another way to detect for PPH is through the use of a catheter---a long, flexible, surgical tube that can be inserted into the body; for PPH it is placed near the heart in order to measure blood pressure. While an echocardiogram carries little or no risk, risks do exist with the catheter method, especially for those individuals who have weak hearts.

The prognosis for patients with PPH can cover a wide spectrum. Many patients who are able to make the appropriate changes in their lifestyle (diet, exercise, smoking, etc.) are still able to perform many of their day-to-day affairs. The median period of survival is three years after diagnosis, although the survival rate is generally longer for those patients without heart failure and for those patients diagnosed after 40.

If you have taken either fen-phen or Redux for more than three months and have any shortness of breath, chest pain or unusual fatigue, the Federal Drug Administration and the American Board of Cardiology recommend that individuals undergo an echocardiogram to detect for the possibility of medical problems.

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