Previous studies have demonstrated an association between COPD exacerbations and pulmonary vascular involvement. Medrek et al. reported a higher prevalence of pulmonary hypertension among patients hospitalized for COPD exacerbations compared with non-hospitalized COPD patients. More recently, studies showed that pulmonary pressures increase significantly during AECOPD compared with the stable state and are associated with prolonged hospitalization and poorer clinical outcomes.
Despite these findings, the effect of acute hypercapnic COPD exacerbations on right ventricular function, pulmonary artery pressures, and RV-pulmonary artery coupling remains incompletely understood, particularly in critically ill patients requiring ICU admission. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate the dynamic changes in right ventricular function and pulmonary artery pressures during acute hypercapnic COPD exacerbations and explore their relationship with clinical outcomes among patients admitted to the ICU.
the study aims to evaluate the dynamic changes in right ventricular-pulmonary artery coupling (TAPSE/PASP ratio) and pulmonary artery pressures during acute hypercapnic COPD exacerbations and their relationship with clinical outcomes among ICU patients.
