Chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) is thought to occur as a sequelae of thromboembolic processes in the pulmonary vasculature. The pathophysiology of CTEPH is multifactorial, including impaired fibrinolysis, endothelial dysregulation, and hypoxic adaptations. The diagnosis of CTEPH is typically delayed considering the nonspecific nature of the symptoms, lack of screening, and relatively low incidence. Diagnostic tools include ventilation-perfusion testing, echocardiography, cardiac catheterization, and pulmonary angiography. The only potentially curative treatment for CTEPH is pulmonary endarterectomy However, approximately 40% of patients are inoperable. Currently, only Riociguat is Food and Drug Administration approved specifically for CTEPH, with additional drug trials underway.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the value of electrocardiography (ECG) in predicting postoperative hemodynamic improvement in patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) undergoing balloon pulmonary angioplasty (BPA).
A total of 32 patients were included in the study. During ECG analysis, parameters that have been suggested to be related to right ventricular hypertrophy and/or dilatation were evaluated. The significance of the change in each parameter obtained at the pre-BPA visit and at the scheduled control visit 6 months after BPA was tested. In addition to ECG analysis, data related to right heart catheterization (RHC) and echocardiography, B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) levels and World Health Organization (WHO) functional classifications of all patients were also recorded. The relationship between the amount of possible change in ECG parameters and the amount of possible change in hemodynamic parameters was investigated.
The Daniel score, which has been suggested to have prognostic value in acute pulmonary embolism, decreased from 8.22 ± 5.68 to 6.56 ± 5.55 after the BPA procedure (p: 0.035). Among all parameters studied, only T wave height (V2 t) in V2 derivation changed significantly from -0.77 ± 2.39 to 1.27 ± 2.58 mm (p: 0.036). The amount of change in V2 T was found to significantly correlate with the amount of change in systolic right ventricular pressure, mean pulmonary artery pressure, pulmonary vascular resistance, and systemic vascular resistance.
Postprocedural T wave changes in lead V2 might serve as a marker of hemodynamic improvement in patients with CTEPH who undergo BPA.

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Chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) is a common type of pulmonary hypertension, resulting from fibrotic transformation of pulmonary artery clots causing chronic obstruction of major pulmonary arteries and associated vascular remodeling in more distal vessels. The mainstay of CTEPH treatment is pulmonary endarterectomy (PEA), which has the potential to be curative but is possible in less than two thirds of cases. In inoperable patients and those with residual or recurrent CTEPH, medical therapy has been shown to be beneficial, albeit not curative. Balloon pulmonary angioplasty (BPA) is a percutaneous technique for the relief of chronic thromboembolic lesions, first reported over two decades ago. More recent case series have demonstrated that, as the technique is refined, results are improving. The potential indications for BPA are now expanding beyond inoperable CTEPH patients, with Shimura et al. demonstrating the aggressive nature of residual or recurrent CTEPH, treated successfully by BPA years after PEA. Major challenges lie ahead of BPA before it can take its place alongside PEA and medication in the treatment of CTEPH.