PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Laurent Savale
AU  - Marie-Camille Chaumais
AU  - Vincent Cottin
AU  - Emmanuel Bergot
AU  - Irène Frachon
AU  - Grégoire Prevot
AU  - Christophe Pison
AU  - Claire Dromer
AU  - Patrice Poubeau
AU  - Nicolas Lamblin
AU  - Gilbert Habib
AU  - Martine Reynaud-Gaubert
AU  - Arnaud Bourdin
AU  - Olivier Sanchez
AU  - Pascale Tubert-Bitter
AU  - Xavier Jaïs
AU  - David Montani
AU  - Olivier Sitbon
AU  - Gérald Simonneau
AU  - Marc Humbert
TI  - Pulmonary hypertension associated with benfluorex exposure
AID  - 10.1183/09031936.00188611
DP  - 2012 Jan 01
TA  - European Respiratory Journal
PG  - erj01886-2011
4099  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/early/2012/04/19/09031936.00188611.short
4100  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/early/2012/04/19/09031936.00188611.full
AB  - Benfluorex was marketed in France until 2009, despite its similar pharmacological properties with fenfluramine and its derivatives known to be a cause of pulmonary arterial hypertension.The aim of this study is to report clinical and haemodynamic characteristics of patients suffering of pulmonary hypertension associated with benfluorex exposure identified by the French pulmonary hypertension network.Eighty five cases of pulmonary hypertension associated with benfluorex exposure were identified by the French pulmonary hypertension network from June 1999 to March 2011. Of these, 70 patients had confirmed pre-capillary pulmonary hypertension. The median duration of exposure was 30 months, with a median of 108 months between start of exposure and diagnosis of the pulmonary vascular disease. 33% of all patients also had prior exposure to fenfluramine or dexfenfluramine, and an additional risk factor for pulmonary hypertension was identified in 20/70 (30%) patients with pre-capillary pulmonary hypertension. A quarter of patients in this current series showed co-existing pulmonary hypertension and mild to moderate cardiac valve involvement.The results of our study, together with the accumulated data regarding the known toxic effects of fenfluramine and dexfenfluramine, strongly suggest that benfluorex exposure is a potent trigger for pulmonary arterial hypertension