Drugs for pulmonary arterial hypertension : comparative efficacy, safety, and cost-effectiveness : recommendations report / Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health, author, issuing body.

Series:

CADTH therapeutic review.

CADTH therapeutic review

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Hypotensive agents--Evaluation.

Hypotensive agents.

Clinical medicine.

Physical Description:

1 online resource.

Place of Publication:

Ottawa, ON : Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health, 2015.

Summary:

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a chronic and progressive disease characterized by the elevation of the mean pulmonary arterial pressure (mPAP) that leads to morbidity and premature mortality. PAH is associated with poor overall prognosis. A US national registry study (conducted prior to the availability of PAH-specific pharmacological treatments) found that the median survival was 2.8 years if untreated. At present, the average survival in adults after diagnosis is estimated at five to seven years. Improvement in pharmacological treatments and care for patients with PAH is thought to have played a role in this survival gain. The Canadian Drug Expert Committee (CDEC) recommends that sildenafil or tadalafil be the preferred initial therapy for adult patients with functional class (FC) II and III pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). CDEC recommends that add-on therapy should be used in adult PAH patients who are unable to achieve disease control with a single drug. CDEC could not make a specific recommendation pertaining to subgroups of patients (based on disease severity or other disease characteristics) who may benefit more from specific drugs or combinations of drugs based on the evidence reviewed.

Notes:

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.