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A deadly lung disorder that can lead to heart failure, Primary Pulmonary Hypertension (commonly referred to as PPH) is currently on the rise in the United States. PPH has only been the subject of serious medical research in the past 10-15 years, and doctors do not as yet fully understand the disease.
PPH occurs when blood vessels in the lungs constrict, raising the pressure in the pulmonary artery (connecting the lungs and heart). As the PPH worsens, the heart must work harder and harder to circulate blood through the lungs. If PPH can be attributed to a specific cause it is sometimes called Secondary Pulmonary Hypertension (SPH) or simply Pulmonary Hypertension (PH). PPH is the term used to refer to the disease when it is not attributed to a single cause. Oddly, the disease is commonly categorized as PPH when it is connected to the use of diet drugs, because while doctors understand that diet drugs are the cause of PPH, they are not certain of the mechanics of this link.
Symptoms of PPH include shortness of breath, fatigue, chest pain, dizziness and fainting spells. PPH is a fairly rare disorder, and ordinarily occurs in two persons out of every million annually. Doctors noticed an increase in PPH cases after the rise in popularity of diet drugs such as Phen Fen. The incidence of reported PPH patients jumped to ten times the normal rate, and according to a New Journal of Medicine study, one in 20,000 Phen Fen users is at risk of developing PPH, meaning that users of such diet drugs increase their risk by several orders of magnitude.
There is no cure for PPH, and the average survival after diagnosis is usually less than three years. However, early diagnosis of PPH and new treatments mean that some patients may survive for ten years or more following diagnosis. The PPH Association reports that recent data suggests that the length of survival continues to improve, and that some PPH patients may be able to successfully manage their conditions for 15 to 20 years, or even longer.
PPH patients who have used diet drugs tend to have more severe cases, according to medical professionals. Dr. Stuart Rich, a leading authority on PPH, writes that patients whose condition has been linked to the use of diet drugs "tend to have a more aggressive disease with a poorer prognosis than similar patients with PPH. This may be a result of the fenfluramines triggering a unique molecular pathway that produces pulmonary vasculopathy."
PPH victims who believe that their use of diet drugs such as Phen Fen contributed to or caused their development of PPH have legal rights of which they should be aware. Unlike claims stemming from heart valve disease caused by the same drugs, PPH claims are treated as individual cases against the manufacturers/distributors. Persons diagnosed with PPH are not subject to the deadlines imposed for heart valve disease victims and may still bring claims for compensation. PPH claims can request compensation for medical treatment and hospital bills, loss of quality of life, lost wages, pain and suffering, and punitive damages. The average PPH claim settlement numbers in the millions of dollars. Because this type litigation is so specific, an attorney experienced in PPH litigation is preferable and may be able to help you make important legal decisions regarding your PPH claim.
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