The last year, Xiao Yue often feel tired, usually a breath can climb to the 5th floor, somehow now climb to the 2nd floor feel like an old cow “huffing and puffing”. Previously slender calves from time to time will become much thicker, a finger pressure to find a pit. Even, Xiaoyue fainted when she was running fast to catch the bus. Xiaoyue went to the hospital for a checkup and finally discovered the cause of her discomfort: high blood pressure in the circulatory system of the lungs, a disease called “pulmonary hypertension”. Xiaoyue was happy to finally know her problem. However, the doctor had a serious expression and told Xiaoyue that if left untreated, pulmonary hypertension is a rapidly fatal disease. And the doctor told Xiaoyue that this disease is very rare, there is no treatment in ordinary hospitals, you can only go home and wait. This was like a bolt from the blue, and Xiaoyue quickly felt fear, confusion and resentment. What kind of disease is pulmonary hypertension? Pulmonary hypertension is an increase in blood pressure in the vascular system within the lungs. The blood pressure measured with a cuff on the upper arm is called “body circulation blood pressure” and reflects the pressure difference between the left heart and the rest of the body (excluding the lungs). The classical meaning of the term “hypertension” stands for arterial hypertension of the body circulation, which is easier to measure and relatively easy to treat. In contrast, diagnosing pulmonary hypertension is more difficult, and its treatment is more challenging. The resistance to blood flow in the pulmonary circulation is only one-fifth that of the body circulation. Pulmonary vessels are sensitive to pressure elevation: they do not like pressure elevation, and once the pressure is increased, the process of pulmonary hypertension is initiated. Pulmonary hypertension has adverse effects on both the pulmonary vasculature and the heart, and its effects begin in the pulmonary vasculature, where the walls of the pulmonary vessels are initially thickened and often constricted. The purpose of this narrowing (or blocking) of the inner diameter of the vessels is to reduce their blood flow. This is like pressing down on the nozzle of a water pipe, which instead causes water to spurt out of the pipe with a very destructive pressure. If the nozzle is pressed more tightly, you will find that the water pipe becomes more rigid due to the pressure. This is the same as when blood does not enter the lungs smoothly under pulmonary hypertension, the pressure is transmitted to the heart in sequence, thus making it increasingly difficult for the heart to pump blood. Even the heart cannot maintain its normal pumping function, resulting in a decrease in blood flow through the pulmonary circulation per unit time, leading to a decrease in oxygen levels in the pulmonary circulation. As a result, patients may feel fatigue, dizziness and shortness of breath, and even fainting. Currently, patients with pulmonary hypertension can live a normal life for a long time if they are treated properly, just like “hypertension” which is regularly controlled. It is especially important to find a specialized center and physician who is familiar with pulmonary hypertension.