Cor pulmonale

Cor pulmonale (Latin cor, heart + New Latin pulmōnāle, of the lungs) or pulmonary heart disease is enlargement of the right ventricle of the heart as a response to increased resistance or high blood pressure in the lungs (pulmonary hypertension). Chronic cor pulmonale usually results in right ventricular hypertrophy (RVH), whereas acute cor pulmonale usually results in dilatation. Hypertrophy is an adaptive response to a long-term increase in pressure. Individual muscle cells grow larger(in thickness) and change to drive the increased contractile force required to move the blood against greater resistance. Dilatation is a stretching (in length) of the ventricle in response to acute increased pressure, such as when caused by a pulmonary...