Invasive Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing in Chronic Thromboembolic Pulmonary Disease; Obesity and the V/VCO Relationship.

: Invasive cardiopulmonary exercise testing (iCPET) provides valuable insight into dyspnea in patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary disease, in part through an increased relationship of minute ventilation to CO production (V/VCO). Obesity lowers the V/VCO in patients without cardiopulmonary disease; however, whether this holds true in obese subjects with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) and chronic thromboembolic pulmonary disease (CTEPD) is unknown. : Report on the iCPET findings of patients with CTEPH and CTEPD and investigate the relationship between obesity and gas exchange parameters, especially V/VCO in these patients.