Introduction: Primary pulmonary hypertension is a rare condition characterized by sustained elevation of pulmonary artery pressure without demonstrable cause. Risk factors such as HIV infection are associated with this disease. HTLV-1 is a retrovirus endemic in Japan and in the Caribbean and an adult T-cell leukaemia-lymphoma is the most severe complication induced.
Observation: A 59 Year-old West Indian woman who had an HTLV-1 retrovirus infection complicated by adult T-cell leukaemia lymphoma developed primary pulmonary hypertension.
Comment: The link between HIV infection and primary pulmonary hypertension is already known. The hypothesis of a link with an other retrovirus has to be confirmed by furthers studies.