Pulmonary insufficiency

In pulmonary insufficiency, blood ejected into the pulmonary artery during systole flows back into the right ventricle during diastole, causing a fluid overload in the ventricle and ventricular hypertrophy; it may ultimately result in right-sided heart failure.

Pulmonic insufficiency is frequently very difficult to appreciate on physical exam, particularly if the pulmonary pressures are normal.

In the fetus, severe pulmonary inefficiency causes hydrops and death.

Alternately, pulmonary insufficiency may be well-tolerated functional disturbance until late adulthood or come to medical attention because of a dilated main pulmonary artery detected on a routine chest x-ray.

The causes of pulmonary insufficiency may be the result of a rare congenital lesion or the stretching of the valvular ring by long lasting pulmonary hypertension. Rarely, prolonged use of a pressure-monitor catheter in the pulmonary artery will lead to this disorder.
Pulmonary insufficiency