Ischaemic strokes in patients with pulmonary arteriovenous malformations and hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia: associations with iron deficiency and platelets.

<div><p>Background</p><p>Pulmonary first pass filtration of particles marginally exceeding ∼7 µm (the size of a red blood cell) is used routinely in diagnostics, and allows cellular aggregates forming or entering the circulation in the preceding cardiac cycle to lodge safely in pulmonary capillaries/arterioles. Pulmonary arteriovenous malformations compromise capillary bed filtration, and are commonly associated with ischaemic stroke. Cohorts with CT-scan evident malformations associated with the highest contrast echocardiographic shunt grades are known to be at higher stroke risk. Our goal was to identify within this broad grouping, which patients were at higher risk of stroke.</p><p>Methodology</p><p>497 consecutive patients with CT-proven pulmonary arteriovenous malformations due to hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia were studied. Relationships with radiologically-confirmed clinical ischaemic stroke were examined using logistic regression, receiver operating characteristic analyses, and platelet studies.</p><p>Principal Findings</p><p>Sixty-one individuals (12.3%) had acute, non-iatrogenic ischaemic clinical strokes at a median age of 52 (IQR 41–63) years. In crude and age-adjusted logistic regression, stroke risk was associated not with venous thromboemboli or conventional neurovascular risk factors, but with low serum iron (adjusted odds ratio 0.96 [95% confidence intervals 0.92, 1.00]), and more weakly with low oxygen saturations reflecting a larger right-to-left shunt (adjusted OR 0.96 [0.92, 1.01]). For the same pulmonary arteriovenous malformations, the stroke risk would approximately double with serum iron 6 µmol/L compared to mid-normal range (7–27 µmol/L). Platelet studies confirmed overlooked data that iron deficiency is associated with exuberant platelet aggregation to serotonin (5HT), correcting following iron treatment. By MANOVA, adjusting for participant and 5HT, iron or ferritin explained 14% of the variance in log-transformed aggregation-rate (p = 0.039/p = 0.021).</p><p>Significance</p><p>These data suggest that patients with compromised pulmonary capillary filtration due to pulmonary arteriovenous malformations are at increased risk of ischaemic stroke if they are iron deficient, and that mechanisms are likely to include enhanced aggregation of circulating platelets.</p></div

Arterial oxygen content is precisely maintained by graded erythrocytotic responses in settings of high/normal serum iron levels, and predicts exercise capacity: an observational study of hypoxaemic patients with pulmonary arteriovenous malformations.

Oxygen, haemoglobin and cardiac output are integrated components of oxygen transport: each gram of haemoglobin transports 1.34 mls of oxygen in the blood. Low arterial partial pressure of oxygen (PaO2), and haemoglobin saturation (SaO2), are the indices used in clinical assessments, and usually result from low inspired oxygen concentrations, or alveolar/airways disease. Our objective was to examine low blood oxygen/haemoglobin relationships in chronically compensated states without concurrent hypoxic pulmonary vasoreactivity.165 consecutive unselected patients with pulmonary arteriovenous malformations were studied, in 98 cases, pre/post embolisation treatment. 159 (96%) had hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia. Arterial oxygen content was calculated by SaO2 x haemoglobin x 1.34/100.There was wide variation in SaO2 on air (78.5-99, median 95)% but due to secondary erythrocytosis and resultant polycythaemia, SaO2 explained only 0.1% of the variance in arterial oxygen content per unit blood volume. Secondary erythrocytosis was achievable with low iron stores, but only if serum iron was high-normal: Low serum iron levels were associated with reduced haemoglobin per erythrocyte, and overall arterial oxygen content was lower in iron deficient patients (median 16.0 [IQR 14.9, 17.4]mls/dL compared to 18.8 [IQR 17.4, 20.1]mls/dL, p<0.0001). Exercise tolerance appeared unrelated to SaO2 but was significantly worse in patients with lower oxygen content (p<0.0001). A pre-defined athletic group had higher Hb:SaO2 and serum iron:ferritin ratios than non-athletes with normal exercise capacity. PAVM embolisation increased SaO2, but arterial oxygen content was precisely restored by a subsequent fall in haemoglobin: 86 (87.8%) patients reported no change in exercise tolerance at post-embolisation follow-up.Haemoglobin and oxygen measurements in isolation do not indicate the more physiologically relevant oxygen content per unit blood volume. This can be maintained for SaO2 ≥78.5%, and resets to the same arterial oxygen content after correction of hypoxaemia. Serum iron concentrations, not ferritin, seem to predict more successful polycythaemic responses

Liver transplantation in a patient with hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia and pulmonary hypertension

Hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia or Rendu-Osler-Weber syndrome is a systemic vascular disease with autosomal dominant inheritance, mucocutaneous telangiectasia, and repeated nasal bleeding due to vascular abnormalities. Hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia may occasionally lead to complications, including arteriovenous malformations and pulmonary hypertension. We present a case of a 52-year-old female patient with hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia who was referred to our hospital for treatment of pulmonary hypertension. She had been diagnosed with hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia during adolescence and was being followed up. Six months prior to presentation, she had undergone coil embolization for pulmonary haemorrhage due to pulmonary arteriovenous malformations. She was in World Health Organization functional class IV, with a mean of pulmonary arterial pressure of 38 mmHg, a pulmonary capillary wedge pressure of 10 mmHg, and a right atrial pressure of 22 mmHg. A contrast-enhanced computed tomography angiography showed large arteriovenous malformations in the liver. Right heart catheterization revealed an increase in oxygen saturation in the inferior vena cava between the supra- and infra-hepatic veins, low pulmonary vascular resistance, and high right atrial pressure. Hence, she was diagnosed with hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia with pulmonary hypertension due to major arteriovenous shunt resulting from arteriovenous malformations in the liver. Therefore, we considered liver transplantation as an essential treatment option. She underwent cadaveric liver transplantation after a year resulting in dramatic haemodynamic improvement to World Health Organization functional class I. Liver transplantation is a promising treatment in patients with hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia and pulmonary hypertension resulting from arteriovenous shunt caused by arteriovenous malformations in the liver

A large, single pulmonary arteriovenous fistula presenting hours after birth

This article reports a case of a single, large pulmonary artery to left atrial fistula presenting within hours of birth. Symptomatic fistulas of this type are exceptionally rare in the neonatal period. The images of the fistula obtained during echocardiography and cardiac catheterisation is included. This case highlights the importance of intra-operative echocardigraphic guidance during surgical ligation of fistulas of this type.peer-reviewe

Diagnosis and treatment of hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia in a pediatric patient with chronic cyanosis.

Background: Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) is an autosomal dominant disorder of vascular dysplasias that is characterized by mucocutaneous telangiectasias, gastrointestinal tract bleeding, and arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) of the pulmonary, hepatic, and cerebral vascular systems. Case Summary: A seven-year-old boy presented to his primary care provider with a five-day history of watery diarrhea and was incidentally found to have oxygen saturations in the low eighties, perioral cyanosis, and clubbing on physical exam. He was referred to the pediatric emergency department (ED) for evaluation. Upon presentation to the pediatric ED, oxygen saturation ranged from 74-85%. He was in no acute distress and was afebrile with normal vital signs. The patient was small for his age with height and weight in the thirteenth and third percentiles, respectively, and had central cyanosis and clubbing of fingers and toes. Auscultation revealed diminished lung sounds in the right lower lobe. No mucocutaneous telangiectasias or cardiac murmurs were appreciated. Family history was positive for hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) with gastrointestinal bleeding and anemia in his maternal great grandmother and maternal grandmother, minor bleeding and mucocutaneous telangiectasias in his mother, and cyanosis with exercise and recurrent epistaxis in his brother. Complete blood count was significant for a hemoglobin level of 18.1 g/dL. A chest x-ray (Figure 1) showed an airspace opacification within the superior segment of the right lower lobe suspicious for an arteriovenous malformation (AVM).peer-reviewe

Angiopoietin-2 predicts morbidity in adults with Fontan physiology.

Morbidity in patients with single-ventricle Fontan circulation is common and includes arrhythmias, edema, and pulmonary arteriovenous malformations (PAVM) among others. We sought to identify biomarkers that may predict such complications. Twenty-five patients with Fontan physiology and 12 control patients with atrial septal defects (ASD) that underwent cardiac catheterization were included. Plasma was collected from the hepatic vein and superior vena cava and underwent protein profiling for a panel of 20 analytes involved in angiogenesis and endothelial dysfunction. Ten (40%) of Fontan patients had evidence of PAVM, eighteen (72%) had a history of arrhythmia, and five (20%) were actively in arrhythmia or had a recent arrhythmia. Angiopoietin-2 (Ang-2) was higher in Fontan patients (8,875.4 ± 3,336.9 pg/mL) versus the ASD group (1,663.6 ± 587.3 pg/mL, p &lt; 0.0001). Ang-2 was higher in Fontan patients with active or recent arrhythmia (11,396.0 ± 3,457.7 vs 8,118.2 ± 2,795.1 pg/mL, p &lt; 0.05). A threshold of 8,500 pg/mL gives Ang-2 a negative predictive value of 100% and positive predictive value of 42% in diagnosing recent arrhythmia. Ang-2 is elevated among adults with Fontan physiology. Ang-2 level is associated with active or recent arrhythmia, but was not found to be associated with PAVM

Clinical and molecular genetic features of pulmonary hypertension in patients with hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia

BACKGROUND: Most patients with familial primary pulmonary hypertension have defects in the gene for bone morphogenetic protein receptor II (BMPR2), a member of the transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) superfamily of receptors. Because patients with hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia may have lung disease that is indistinguishable from primary pulmonary hypertension, we investigated the genetic basis of lung disease in these patients. METHODS: We evaluated members of five kindreds plus one individual patient with hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia and identified 10 cases of pulmonary hypertension. In the two largest families, we used microsatellite markers to test for linkage to genes encoding TGF-beta-receptor proteins, including endoglin and activin-receptor-like kinase 1 (ALK1), and BMPR2. In subjects with hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia and pulmonary hypertension, we also scanned ALK1 and BMPR2 for mutations. RESULTS: We identified suggestive linkage of pulmonary hypertension with hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia on chromosome 12q13, a region that includes ALK1. We identified amino acid changes in activin-receptor-like kinase 1 that were inherited in subjects who had a disorder with clinical and histologic features indistinguishable from those of primary pulmonary hypertension. Immunohistochemical analysis in four subjects and one control showed pulmonary vascular endothelial expression of activin-receptor-like kinase 1 in normal and diseased pulmonary arteries. CONCLUSIONS: Pulmonary hypertension in association with hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia can involve mutations in ALK1. These mutations are associated with diverse effects, including the vascular dilatation characteristic of hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia and the occlusion of small pulmonary arteries that is typical of primary pulmonary hypertension

Circulatory contributors to the phenotype in hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia

Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) is mechanistically and therapeutically challenging, not only because of the molecular and cellular perturbations that generate vascular abnormalities, but also the modifications to circulatory physiology that result, and are likely to exacerbate vascular injury. First, most HHT patients have visceral arteriovenous malformations (AVMs). Significant visceral AVMs reduce the systemic vascular resistance: supra-normal cardiac outputs are required to maintain arterial blood pressure, and may result in significant pulmonary venous hypertension. Secondly, bleeding from nasal and gastrointestinal telangiectasia leads to iron losses of such magnitude that in most cases, diet is insufficient to meet the ‘hemorrhage adjusted iron requirement.’ Resultant iron deficiency restricts erythropoiesis, leading to anemia and further increases in cardiac output. Low iron levels are also associated with venous and arterial thromboses, elevated Factor VIII, and increased platelet aggregation to circulating 5HT (serotonin). Third, recent data highlight that reduced oxygenation of blood due to pulmonary AVMs results in a graded erythrocytotic response to maintain arterial oxygen content, and higher stroke volumes and/or heart rates to maintain oxygen delivery. Finally, HHT-independent factors such as diet, pregnancy, sepsis and other intercurrent illnesses also influence vascular structures, hemorrhage, and iron handling in HHT patients. These considerations emphasize the complexity of mechanisms that impact on vascular structures in HHT, and also offer opportunities for targeted therapeutic approaches