Increased pulmonary venous pressure is transmitted to the pulmonary arterial system in which type of heart failure?

• A. Left Heart Failure
• B. Right Heart Failure
• C. Biventricular Failure
• D. High-Output Failure

Answer: (A)

When the left ventricle can’t pump effectively, blood backs up into the left atrium, raising left atrial pressure and the pulmonary venous pressure. That elevated pressure is transmitted through the pulmonary capillaries to the pulmonary arterial system, increasing pressures in the pulmonary circulation and causing pulmonary congestion and edema. This pattern is characteristic of left-sided heart failure.

In contrast, right-sided failure backs up into the systemic venous system, not the pulmonary veins, and high-output failure involves increased cardiac output rather than backward pressure into the lungs.