Cor Pulmonale
Basic Information
Definition
Cor pulmonale is right-sided heart failure or significant right ventricular hypertrophy (RVH) resulting from pulmonary hypertension. It usually implies that the pulmonary hypertension is caused by pulmonary parenchymal disease, airway obstruction, or hypoventilation syndromes rather than by left-sided heart failure, congenital heart disease, or primary pulmonary hypertension syndromes (see the Pulmonary Hypertension chapter in Diseases and Disorders [Section I] for descriptions of pediatric pulmonary hypertension).
Epidemiology & Demographics
Cor pulmonale is much less common in children than in adults, in whom chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and emphysema are common causes.