Darkness crippled in the lives of family members, with the sudden demise of the only son of the family, aged 38, years undergoing treatment for an interstitial lung disorder. The death report stated cardiac arrest not a pulmonary failure as the cause of untimely demise. This incidence like many more, hints the fine-tuning at the cellular-functional axis, amongst The MOST VITAL organs “Lungs & Heart” to support life.
Pulmonary cardiovascular disease
Both cardiovascular and pulmonary disease is the leading cause of deaths worldwide. Cardiovascular diseases developed in respiratory patients have a high mortality rate apart from affecting day to day lives. For instance, patients with lung fibrosis or COPD are more likely to die due to heart failure as compared to those with a pulmonary issue but no cardiac involvement”. The irony of the story is that the patient with lung disease is less likely to receive coronary revascularization or coronary artery bypass graft. It is due to similar symptoms in both condition and complex management in the pretext of existing lung complications.
The dynamics of Heart Lung Reciprocity
Lungs and heart not only share the thoracic cavity in common but also are functionally interdependent. A load of transporting oxygen laden pure blood is a composite effort of both the organs. This is evident in heart diseases having breathlessness as a hallmark.
Pulmonary disease conditions such as ILD can exert backpressure to heart known as pulmonary arterial hypertension causing right-sided heart failure. Also, conditions like left-sided heart failure, mitral stenosis, myocardial infarction can cause pulmonary edema or waterlog in the lungs due to venous hypertension. Fluid accumulation in air sacs or obstruction in blood flow due to fibrosis leads to a build-up of arterial pressure resulting in morbidity due to heart collapse.
Conclusion
Advancement in medical and surgical intervention has undoubtedly increased life expectancy and strengthened emergency care. However, the major lacuna to date is the prognosis mystery regarding the unrevealing of complex lung disorders. The situation is highly alarming with the involvement of pumping organs, eventually leading to untimely catastrophe, known as DEATH.