Pulmonary embolism, a medical emergency for pulmonary physicians, is defined as a blockage of the main artery of the lung or one of its branches by embolism, from many sources, such as thrombus, air, amniotic fluid, tumor, or fat.1 A good clinician, especially a pulmonary or critical care physician, should consider the possible diagnosis of pulmonary embolism in a highly suspected patient, sinc...

Thirty-eight patients with pulmonary embolic disease, other than acute massive pulmonary embolism, have been assessed clinically and by right heart catheterisation and pulmonary arteriography or pulmonary embo-lectomy. In addition, completefollow-up information was obtained in 92 per cent (35) ofpatients 1 to 8 years after their initial illness. On the basis of the history and the pulmonary art...

BACKGROUND Studies aimed at assessing whether the emboli lodged in the central pulmonary arteries carry a worse prognosis than more peripheral emboli have yielded controversial results. AIMS To explore the impact on survival and long-term prognosis of central pulmonary embolism. PATIENTS AND METHODS Consecutive patients diagnosed with acute symptomatic pulmonary embolism by means of compute...

OBJECTIVE To assess the value of transoesophageal echocardiography (TOE) for diagnosing suspected haemodynamically significant pulmonary embolism and signs of right ventricular overload at standard echocardiography. METHODS 113 consecutive patients (58 male; 55 female), mean (SD) age 53.6 (13.3) years, in whom there was clinical suspicion of pulmonary embolism and right ventricular overload o...

Severe pulmonary embolism is a life-threatening disease requiring a wellbalanced therapeutic approach. It is of upmost importance to differentiate between acute pulmonary embolism and chronic pulmonary embolism in this setting. The management of acute embolism is predominantly carried out by the internal specialist, whereas the therapy of chronic pulmonary embolism is in the domain of the surgi...

Objective. To determine the utility of high quantitative D-dimer levels in the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism. Methods. D-dimer testing was performed in consecutive patients with suspected pulmonary embolism. We included patients with suspected pulmonary embolism with a high risk for venous thromboembolism, i.e. hospitalized patients, patients older than 80 years, with malignancy or previous s...

Deep venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolism events are common complications following lower-extremity orthopedic surgery. Conversely, deep venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolism events are rare following upper-extremity surgery, specifically shoulder arthroscopy. The purpose of this article is to emphasize the necessity of performing a thorough preoperative workup to uncover possible risk f...

This report describes a case in which a patient had a Greenfield filter placed at the time of diagnosis of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) when he was asymptomatic for pulmonary embolism. Later in the patient's hospital course, a typical clincal picture of pulmonary embolism developed. The issues examined in this report include: (1) the incidence of asymptomatic pulmonary embolism; (2) the value of ...

OBJECTIVE To determine the ability of conventional and Doppler echocardiography to distinguish between minor, acute massive, and subacute massive pulmonary embolism in patients with confirmed pulmonary embolism. DESIGN Prospective study of a consecutive series of 47 patients with confirmed pulmonary embolism. SETTING Department of internal medicine, university clinic. PATIENTS 11 patients...

Reports of pulmonary embolism in the setting of acute pancreatitis are rare. We present three cases of acute pancreatitis associated with pulmonary embolism and review the literature. Two of the three patients had severe acute pancreatitis with bilateral pulmonary emboli, and to our knowledge, these cases represent the first report of pulmonary embolism occurring in the setting of pancreatic as...