Reversible pulmonary hypertension associated with vitamin C deficiency

M Kupari, J Rapola - Chest, 2012 - Elsevier
We describe the case of a 40-year-old female patient who developed severe pulmonary
hypertension and life-threatening right-sided heart failure in association with dietary scurvy
and iron deficiency. Supplementation with oral vitamin C and iron very likely contributed to
her complete cure. Scurvy-associated pulmonary arterial hypertension could result from
impaired availability of endothelial nitric oxide, but inappropriate activation of the hypoxia-
inducible family (HIF) of transcription factors could play an even more important role. HIF …