# Friedrich Grimminger
**Friedrich Grimminger** (Prof. Dr. Dr.; also cited as F. Grimminger) is a German pulmonary physician-scientist who has been Professor of Internal Medicine (W3) at the Justus Liebig University Giessen (JLU) since 2003 and became Director of Medical Clinic IV/V there in 2003, and served as Director of the pneumology clinic of the Universitätsklinikum Giessen und Marburg.[1](https://ilh-giessen.de/en/leadership-and-management/friedrich-grimminger/) • [2](https://www.ukgm.de/ugm_2/deu/ugi_pne/ugi_pne_team.php?id=12095) • [12](https://www.mittelhessen.de/lokales/kreis-marburg-biedenkopf/marburg/gernot-rohde-uebernimmt-leitung-der-klinik-fuer-pneumologie-4621695) He is known for the Giessen pharmacotherapy program in pulmonary hypertension, whose work on [phosphodiesterase inhibitors](https://www.edgepedia.org/phosphodiesterase-inhibitor) and soluble guanylate cyclase activators provided the basis for worldwide approval of inhaled iloprost, inhaled treprostinil, oral sildenafil, oral tadalafil, and riociguat for treatment of the disease.[3](https://ilh-giessen.de/en/adjunct-faculty/pharmacotherapy-of-pulmonary-hypertension/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Field | Internal medicine, pneumology, pulmonary hypertension research |
| Chair and clinic | Professor of Internal Medicine (W3), JLU Giessen, since 2003; Director of Medical Clinic IV/V, JLU Giessen, from 2003[1](https://ilh-giessen.de/en/leadership-and-management/friedrich-grimminger/) |
| Specialist qualifications | Internal medicine with pneumology, oncology, intensive care, allergology, palliative medicine, and special pain therapy[4](https://www.klinikum-hersfeld-rotenburg.de/aktuelles/archiv/herausragende_schluesselfigur_fuer_die_gesundheits.html) |
| Signature work | Sildenafil trial in lung fibrosis with secondary pulmonary hypertension, *The Lancet*, 2002[5](https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(02)11024-5/abstract) |
| Therapeutic impact | Programme underpinning worldwide approvals of iloprost, treprostinil, sildenafil, tadalafil, and riociguat for pulmonary hypertension[3](https://ilh-giessen.de/en/adjunct-faculty/pharmacotherapy-of-pulmonary-hypertension/) |
| Honours | Honorary medal of the JLU Medical Faculty, 2021[6](https://www.uni-giessen.de/de/ueber-uns/pressestelle/pm/pm78-21) |
## Career
Grimminger studied medicine and biology at the Justus Liebig University Giessen and the University of Newcastle, UK, from 1980 to 1987. He received a doctorate in medicine from JLU in 1989 and a doctorate in biology in 1990, and habilitated in internal medicine at JLU in 1992.[1](https://ilh-giessen.de/en/leadership-and-management/friedrich-grimminger/)
Since 2003 he has held the W3 chair in Internal Medicine and directed Medical Clinic IV/V at JLU's School of Medicine.[1](https://ilh-giessen.de/en/leadership-and-management/friedrich-grimminger/) He is listed among the directors of the Universities of Giessen and Marburg Lung Center (UGMLC).[7](https://ugmlc.de/directors-office/) On 23 June 2021 the Medical Faculty of JLU awarded him its honorary medal.[6](https://www.uni-giessen.de/de/ueber-uns/pressestelle/pm/pm78-21)
## Representative work
The 2002 *Lancet* randomised trial of sildenafil in lung fibrosis with secondary pulmonary hypertension is the study his pharmacotherapy line is anchored on. The 2002 Lancet trial was a randomised controlled, open-label trial in 16 individuals admitted to the Giessen hospital with pulmonary hypertension secondary to lung fibrosis. Pulmonary vascular resistance index fell by 21.9% with nitric oxide, 36.9% with epoprostenol, and 32.5% with sildenafil. The trial concluded that sildenafil causes preferential pulmonary vasodilation and improves gas exchange in patients with severe lung fibrosis and secondary pulmonary hypertension.[5](https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(02)11024-5/abstract)
This acute haodynamic work grew into a trial program with practice-level consequences. In SUPER-1, a 2005 *New England Journal of Medicine* trial, 278 patients with symptomatic pulmonary arterial hypertension were randomized to placebo or sildenafil 20, 40, or 80 mg three times daily for 12 weeks; the placebo-corrected improvements in six-minute walk distance were 45 m, 46 m, and 50 m respectively (P<0.001 for all), and among the 222 patients completing one year of sildenafil monotherapy the improvement from baseline was 51 m.[8](https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa050010) The program's phosphodiesterase-inhibitor and soluble-guanylate-cyclase work provided the basis for worldwide approval of inhaled iloprost, inhaled treprostinil, oral sildenafil, oral tadalafil, and riociguat for pulmonary hypertension.[3](https://ilh-giessen.de/en/adjunct-faculty/pharmacotherapy-of-pulmonary-hypertension/)
## Research environment
Grimminger works within a large cardiopulmonary research structure at Giessen. Since 2006 he has been Co-Coordinator of the Excellence Cluster Cardio-Pulmonary System (ECCPS).[1](https://ilh-giessen.de/en/leadership-and-management/friedrich-grimminger/) He is Giessen-located faculty of the Cardio-Pulmonary Institute (CPI).[9](https://cpi-online.de/cpi-faculty/friedrich-grimminger/) Excellence funding for heart-lung research in Giessen has run since 2006 (EXC 147 / EXC 2026), and in 2025 a funding decision was made for the CPI's continuation under the Excellence Strategy for 2025 to 2032.[10](https://www.uni-giessen.de/en/research/research_profile/profile_areas/cardiopulm) He is also honorary professor at the universities of Kent (UK) and Texas (USA).[4](https://www.klinikum-hersfeld-rotenburg.de/aktuelles/archiv/herausragende_schluesselfigur_fuer_die_gesundheits.html)
## Recent developments
He remains active in clinical pulmonary hypertension research. A 2026 analysis in the *American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine* identified 940 patients with hemodynamically characterized interstitial-lung-disease-associated pulmonary hypertension among 34,482 registry patients; 62% had severe disease with pulmonary vascular resistance above 5 Wood units and survival of 29% and 18% at 3 and 5 years, and [PDE5 inhibitor](https://www.edgepedia.org/pde5-inhibitor) treatment was associated with improved survival in severe pulmonary hypertension (hazard ratio 0.537 for idiopathic interstitial pneumonia-associated PH).[11](https://fis.tu-dresden.de/portal/de/publications/hemodynamics-and-phosphodiesterase5-inhibitor-treatment-associated-with-survival-in-pulmonary-hypertension-in-interstitial-lung-disease-a-pvri-godeep-metaregistry-analysis(f2437d6a-20f7-4349-865b-17223e4d6d9c).html)
## References
1. Prof. Dr. Dr. Friedrich Grimminger, Institute for Lung Health (ILH), JLU Gießen. https://ilh-giessen.de/en/leadership-and-management/friedrich-grimminger/
2. Team, Universitätsklinikum Giessen und Marburg, pneumology. https://www.ukgm.de/ugm_2/deu/ugi_pne/ugi_pne_team.php?id=12095
3. Pharmacotherapy of Pulmonary Hypertension, ILH Gießen. https://ilh-giessen.de/en/adjunct-faculty/pharmacotherapy-of-pulmonary-hypertension/
4. Profile of Prof. Dr. Dr. Friedrich Grimminger, Klinikum Hersfeld-Rotenburg. https://www.klinikum-hersfeld-rotenburg.de/aktuelles/archiv/herausragende_schluesselfigur_fuer_die_gesundheits.html
5. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(02)11024-5/abstract
6. Ehrenmedaille des Fachbereichs Medizin, JLU press release, 2021. https://www.uni-giessen.de/de/ueber-uns/pressestelle/pm/pm78-21
7. Directors & Office, Universities of Giessen and Marburg Lung Center (UGMLC). https://ugmlc.de/directors-office/
8. Sildenafil Citrate Therapy for Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension. *New England Journal of Medicine*, 2005. https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa050010
9. Friedrich Grimminger, Cardio-Pulmonary Institute faculty. https://cpi-online.de/cpi-faculty/friedrich-grimminger/
10. Cardiopulmonary System (Heart/Lungs), JLU Giessen research profile. https://www.uni-giessen.de/en/research/research_profile/profile_areas/cardiopulm
11. https://fis.tu-dresden.de/portal/de/publications/hemodynamics-and-phosphodiesterase5-inhibitor-treatment-associated-with-survival-in-pulmonary-hypertension-in-interstitial-lung-disease-a-pvri-godeep-metaregistry-analysis(f2437d6a-20f7-4349-865b-17223e4d6d9c).html
12. Gernot Rohde übernimmt Leitung der Klinik für Pneumologie. https://www.mittelhessen.de/lokales/kreis-marburg-biedenkopf/marburg/gernot-rohde-uebernimmt-leitung-der-klinik-fuer-pneumologie-4621695
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Life and health › Life and health scientists › Medical and health researchers › Pulmonary and respiratory researchers › Pulmonary vascular and critical care researchers*
*Initially written Sep 21, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 25, 2026; Sep 30, 2026 · Edited: Sep 25, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 15, 2026 · Last review: Sep 30, 2026*
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