Clevidipine for Vasoreactivity Evaluation of the Pulmonary Arterial Bed
Status:
Completed
Trial end date:
2013-04-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a rare blood vessel disorder of the lung in which
the pressure in the pulmonary artery (PA) rises above normal levels and may become life
threatening. PAH is frequently misdiagnosed and has often progressed to late stage by the
time it is accurately diagnosed. PAH has been historically chronic and incurable with a poor
survival rate. However, new treatments are available which have significantly improved
prognosis. Right-heart catheterization (RHC) is the most accurate and useful test for PAH,
and the only test that directly measures the pressure inside the PA. It is performed in all
patients at least once, to get a definitive diagnosis of PAH.
The most commonly used medication for this purpose is intravenous nitroprusside, however this
medication in about 25-30% of patients is not well tolerated as it cause fast heart rates,
which is not well tolerated by patients with pulmonary hypertension and/or heart failure. The
CARVE study assesses the effect of Clevidipine, an ultra-short acting vasoselective calcium
antagonist, on pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) and its utility for pulmonary
vasoreactivity testing during right heart catheterization (RHC) of patients with pulmonary
hypertension (PAH).