What is the WHO functional class? The World Health Organization (WHO) functional class describes how severe a patient’s pulmonary hypertension (PH) symptoms are.2 There are four different classes – I is the mildest and IV the most severe form of PH.

There are four functional classes that are used to rate how ill PH patients are. Currently, the World Health Organization or WHO class system is used to describe these patients. It is important to distinguish WHO functional class from WHO group.

The types of Pulmonary Hypertension are very specific as defined by the World Health Organization and include PAH, PH due to left heart disease, CTEPH & more.

Results from the meta-analysis of RCTs indicated that PAH medications reduced the risk of morbidity and mortality by 35%–40% in patients with FC I or II PAH, which was comparable to the effect of medical therapy for patients in FC III or IV.

We suggest that the severity of a PAH patient’s disease be evaluated in a systematic and consistent manner, using a combination of WHO FC, exercise capacity, echocardiographic, laboratory and hemodynamic variables in order to inform therapeutic decisions (Ungraded consensus-based statement).

Apr 8, 2025 · The functional classification is the measure of the limits imposed on a patient by a disease. It is a critical element of the assessment of patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Functional classification is strongly predictive of mortality, [1] and is an important factor in the choice of PAH therapy. [2]

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is an incurable chronic and progressive debilitating disease associated with significant morbidity and mortality. The World Health Organization functional class (WHO FC) at diagnosis and at follow-up remains one ...

Aug 24, 2021 · The PH-FC-SR includes patient-appropriate language, symptoms, and physical activity impacts relevant to patients with PAH. Future research is recommended to validate the PH-FC-SR and explore its correlation with the physician-assessed WHO-FC and other outcomes.

PURPOSE: To develop a patient self-completed assessment of physical functioning based on the World Health Organization Functional Class (WHO-FC) measure for patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH).

Aug 24, 2021 · The PH-FC-SR includes patient-appropriate language, symptoms, and physical activity impacts relevant to patients with PAH. Future research is recommended to validate the PH-FC-SR and explore its correlation with the physician-assessed WHO-FC and other outcomes.