Studies of Plasma Proteins Derived From Pulmonary Arteriovenous Malformation Patients

Hereditary Haemorrhagic Telangiectasia (HHT, also known as Osler-Weber-Rendu Syndrome) is an disease that leads to the development of dilated and fragile blood vessels, including arteriovenous malformations in the lungs (PAVMs). We hypothesize that the genetically-determined abnormality in the blood vessels of HHT patients leads to alteration in the concentrations or activity of several proteins in the blood stream. We propose to take blood samples from patients at defined times in order to study changes in blood protein levels and activity