WHIPPANY, N.J., April 11, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Bayer HealthCare today announced it has launched an educational website for U.S. physicians about a rare, life-threatening condition called Chronic Thromboembolic Pulmonary Hypertension (CTEPH). The site – www.CTEPH.com – is designed to increase CTEPH disease awareness among healthcare professionals (HCPs) and educate them on proper CTEPH diagnosis and surgical treatment. An expert panel of CTEPH experts worked with Bayer to develop the content and direction of the website.

CTEPH is a rare form of pulmonary hypertension (PH) in which blood clots and thromboembolic occlusion of the pulmonary vessels leads to increased pressure in the pulmonary arteries. The treatment of choice for patients that have operable CTEPH is pulmonary endarterectomy (PEA), a potentially curative surgery that clears clots and scar material from the blood vessels of the lung.

"CTEPH.com will be a valuable resource for clinicians.  Bringing together the latest in scientific literature and expert opinion, this unique educational tool will provide accurate and up-to-date information on the evaluation and appropriate management of patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension.  I believe this will be a valuable information site for those healthcare providers caring for patients with this devastating form of pulmonary hypertension," said William R. Auger, MD, Professor of Clinical Medicine, Research Director, Pulmonary Thromboendarterectomy Program, University of California, San Diego.

Each year, in the US, about 600,000 persons have an acute PE, and it is estimated that there are between 500 and 2,500 new cases of CTEPH diagnosed each year.  A diagnosis of CTEPH is often not correctly made in patients with PH, because they have no overt history of PE.

CTEPH symptoms can be nonspecific and indistinguishable from symptoms of other forms of PH, but, when properly diagnosed, is potentially curable with PEA. Every patient diagnosed with CTEPH should be evaluated by an expert CTEPH team, including a CTEPH physician and PEA surgeons, to assess their candidacy for PEA surgery.

"As a physician caring for many patients with CTEPH, I have personally seen how lack of knowledge of this condition can negatively affect patient care.  This resource will have huge value in raising awareness and informing healthcare providers about CTEPH, which will, in turn, help patients," Richard Channick MD, Director, Pulmonary Hypertension and Thromboemdarterectomy Program, Massachusetts General Hospital.

About Bayer HealthCare
The Bayer Group is a global enterprise with core competencies in the fields of health care, agriculture and high-tech materials. Bayer HealthCare, a subgroup of Bayer AG with annual sales of EUR 18.9 billion (2013), is one of the world's leading, innovative companies in the healthcare and medical products industry and is based in Leverkusen, Germany. The company combines the global activities of the Animal Health, Consumer Care, Medical Care and Pharmaceuticals divisions.  

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SOURCE Bayer Corporation