Which statement best defines cor pulmonale?

Which statement best defines cor pulmonale?

• A. Left heart failure due to CAD
• B. Right heart failure due to chronic lung disease or pulmonary hypertension
• C. Right heart failure due to valvular disease
• D. Acute liver failure

Answer: (B)

Cor pulmonale is right ventricular failure that arises from diseases of the lung or its vasculature, which cause chronic pulmonary hypertension. When the lungs or pulmonary vessels are chronically diseased, the tiny arteries constrict and remodel, raising the resistance the right ventricle must pump against. Over time, the right ventricle hypertrophies to handle this increased afterload, and eventually its function declines, leading to right-sided heart failure. This definition focuses on the pulmonary origin of the problem, which distinguishes cor pulmonale from right-sided failure caused by problems in the heart itself (such as valvular disease) or systemic conditions. Left-sided heart failure due to CAD affects the left ventricle and often leads to secondary right-sided failure, but that’s not the same as cor pulmonale. Acute liver failure is unrelated to the pulmonary-driven right heart failure described here.

Cor pulmonale is right ventricular failure that arises from diseases of the lung or its vasculature, which cause chronic pulmonary hypertension. When the lungs or pulmonary vessels are chronically diseased, the tiny arteries constrict and remodel, raising the resistance the right ventricle must pump against. Over time, the right ventricle hypertrophies to handle this increased afterload, and eventually its function declines, leading to right-sided heart failure.

This definition focuses on the pulmonary origin of the problem, which distinguishes cor pulmonale from right-sided failure caused by problems in the heart itself (such as valvular disease) or systemic conditions. Left-sided heart failure due to CAD affects the left ventricle and often leads to secondary right-sided failure, but that’s not the same as cor pulmonale. Acute liver failure is unrelated to the pulmonary-driven right heart failure described here.