Lindarella and the Wicked Malady

Lindarella and the Wicked Malady | 123sonography: At the age of 34 Lindarella fell ill. She stopped swimming because she felt weaker. After a few months any effort would cause her shortness of breath, so she avoided going out with friends. The smartest doctors in town were summoned to the royal palace: Lindarella’s heart was beating fast: her heart rate at rest was 95 bpm, and her blood pressure was 100/70 mmHg. Moreover, the pulmonary component of the second heart sound was accentuated and a pansystolic murmur was found near the sternum. Her legs were swollen. The ECG showed huge P waves and ST-segment depression in V1-V3. Her BNP was 1500 pg/dl. Experts in the field of echocardiography gathered in town. After several exams, including a right heart catheterization, the diagnosis was established: idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (iPAH).