TY - JOUR T1 - Peripheral and respiratory muscle strength in pulmonary artery hypertension JF - European Respiratory Journal JO - Eur Respir J VL - 40 IS - Suppl 56 SP - P4149 AU - Melda Saglam AU - Naciye Vardar-Yagli AU - Ebru Calik AU - Hulya Arikan AU - Sema Savci AU - Deniz Inal-Ince AU - Ozge Ozalp AU - Ali Akdogan AU - Mehmet Yokusoglu AU - Lale Tokgozoglu Y1 - 2012/09/01 UR - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/40/Suppl_56/P4149.abstract N2 - Background and Aim: Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a rare pulmonary vascular disease characterized by increased pulmonary arterial pressure. The PAH patients experience dyspnea and fatigue limiting performance in activities of daily life. The aim of this study was to compare lung function, respiratory muscle strength, and peripheral muscle strength between patients with PAH and healthy subjects.Materials and Methods: Seventeen patients with PAH (4 M, 13 F) and fifteen age-matched healthy controls (7 M, 8 F) participated in this study. Pulmonary function test was performed using spirometry. Respiratory muscle strength was measured using a mouth pressure device. Lower and upper peripheral muscle strength was measured from quadriceps femoris, shoulder abductors a hand held dynamometer, and hand grip was recorded.Results: The mean pulmonary arterial pressure was 63.57±31.77 mmHg. In PAH patients, maximal inspiratory pressure was significantly correlated with mean pulmonary arterial pressure (r=-0.67, p<0.05). The mean maximal inspiratory (p<0.0001) and expiratory muscle pressures (p=0.001) of patients with PAH were significantly lower than those of healthy controls. Quadriceps muscle force (p=0.05), shoulder abduction force (p<0.0001), and hand grip force (p=0.018) were significantly lower in patients with PAH as compared with healthy controls.Conclusions: High pulmonary arterial pressure results in reduced peripheral, inspiratory and expiratory muscle strength. Effects of respiratory and peripheral muscle training in patients with PAH needs further investigation. ER -