Clinical Characteristics and Transplant-Free Survival Across the Spectrum of Pulmonary Vascular Disease

Abstract

Background: PVDOMICS (Pulmonary Vascular Disease Phenomics) is a precision medicine initiative to characterize pulmonary vascular disease (PVD) using deep phenotyping. PVDOMICS tests the hypothesis that integration of clinical metrics with omic measures will enhance understanding of PVD and facilitate an updated PVD classification.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to describe clinical characteristics and transplant-free survival in the PVDOMICS cohort.

Methods: Subjects with World Symposium Pulmonary Hypertension (WSPH) group 1-5 PH, disease comparators with similar underlying diseases and mild or no PH and healthy control subjects enrolled in a cross-sectional study. PH groups, comparators were compared using standard statistical tests including log-rank tests for comparing time to transplant or death.

Results: A total of 1,193 subjects were included. Multiple WSPH groups were identified in 38.9% of PH subjects. Nocturnal desaturation was more frequently observed in groups 1, 3, and 4 PH vs comparators. A total of 50.2% of group 1 PH subjects had ground glass opacities on chest computed tomography. Diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide was significantly lower in groups 1-3 PH than their respective comparators. Right atrial volume index was higher in WSPH groups 1-4 than comparators. A total of 110 participants had a mean pulmonary artery pressure of 21-24 mm Hg. Transplant-free survival was poorest in group 3 PH.

Conclusions: PVDOMICS enrolled subjects across the spectrum of PVD, including mild and mixed etiology PH. Novel findings include low diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide and enlarged right atrial volume index as shared features of groups 1-3 and 1-4 PH, respectively; unexpected, frequent presence of ground glass opacities on computed tomography; and sleep alterations in group 1 PH, and poorest survival in group 3 PH. PVDOMICS will facilitate a new understanding of PVD and refine the current PVD classification.