About CTEPH

When people talk about blood pressure, they are normally referring to the blood pressure you measure with a cuff. This is called systemic blood pressure—the pressure in your body’s arteries (blood vessels) as your heart pumps blood to the rest of your body. If your systemic blood pressure is high, you have systemic hypertension.

In pulmonary hypertension (PH), the blood vessels in the lungs (pulmonary arteries) have become stiff, damaged, or narrow, and the right side of the heart has to work harder to pump blood through.

CTEPH, or chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension, is a form of PH. In CTEPH, a thrombus (clot-like mass) gets stuck to a blood vessel in the lungs and blocks blood flow.

Pulmonary thromboendarterectomy (PTE) surgery is a complex surgical procedure performed on eligible people with CTEPH, whose PH is caused by blood clots in the lungs. PTE surgery is used to remove blood clots and restore blood flow to the lungs. This surgery is performed only at select, specialized centers.

BPA (balloon pulmonary angioplasty) is another surgical option that can be available to those not eligible for PTE surgery.