Auscultatory and phonocardiographic manifestations of pulmonary hypertension

Abstract

Interpretation of the auscultatory and phonocardiographic manifestations of pulmonary hypertension has benefited from the meticulous correlation of clinical information, on the one hand, and physiologic—anatomic information, on the other. The purpose of this report has been to review the acoustic features associated with elevated pressure in the pulmonary artery. In discussing these features, the following topics were covered: (1) the acoustic events due to pulmonary hypertension per se; (2) the disorders such as primary pulmonary hypertension, recurrent peripheral pulmonary emboli, etc., that permit the purest expression of these acoustic events; (3) the influence of pulmonary hypertension on the acoustic signs of coexisting congenital or acquired heart disease; (4) the alterations that occur in the auditory signs of pulmonary hypertension in the presence of disorders such as emphysema, kyphoscoliosis, obesity or large pulmonary arterial thrombi; and (5) disorders that can cause mistaken ausculatory impressions of pulmonary hypertension.