• Basic treatment
a) Oral anticoagulation (pills for thinning the blood)
b) Diuretics (pills for removing water)
c) Oxygen treatment

• Targeted therapy for pulmonary arterial hypertension
a) Calcium channel blockers: only for patients who respond to the acute vaso-reactive test performed during right heart cardiac catheterization! (pills)
b) Synthetic prostacyclin and analogous prostacyclin (to inhale or for subcutaneous therapy by insertion of a permanent canula in the subcutaneous tissue or intravenous administration via permanent canula into a blood vessel)
c) Endothelin receptor antagonists (pills)
d) PDE-5 inhibitors (pills)

These forms of medication can be applied as individual treatments or as part of a combined treatment. Your doctor will decide on a treatment on the basis of the tests that are listed above.

• Surgical options
a) balloon atrial septostomy
b) thromboendoarterectomy
c) Lung transplant

Reviewed by Prof. Simon J Gibbs
Last medical update: 05/30/2020