Hipertensión Arterial Pulmonar. Manifestaciones clínicas y tratamiento con sildenafil en niños. Revisión de literatura y análisis de 11 casos/Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension. Clinical manifestations and treatment with sildenafil in children: Literature review and Analysis of 11 cases

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a sickness that consists of elevation in pressure of vessels through which blood flows to the lung with high rate of mortality. Sildenafil has been used to treat PAH in children for the fact that it relaxes the blood vessels and thereby permits pulmonary blood flow with ease. The purpose of the present work was to analyze the clinical behavior of children with PAH treated with sildenafil as a progress of a long study carried out in our Hospital. Moreover, the interventions derived from physiopathological knowledge and clinical presentations of patients diagnosed with PAH are analyzed in this review with a view of providing vital information which could lead to its early diagnosis and management based on the evidence obtained from National Institute of Pediatrics. Until now, we have studied 11 children with PAH who accepted to participate in the study with the consent of their parents or guardians. The ages and weights of the children ranged from 0.5 to 15 years and from 3 to 27 kg. With an average follow-up of once in every two months, the patients have shown to have a good clinical evolution without adverse effects that could put their life at risk.