Diagnosis of pulmonary embolism.

Abstract

Pulmonary embolism is the third cause of mortality by cardiovascular disease after coronary artery disease and stroke, and its incidence is around 1/1000 per year. During the last two decades, many different non-invasive diagnostic tests have been developed and validated. For hemodynamically stable outpatients, the diagnosis of acute pulmonary embolism mainly rests on the sequential use of clinical assessment, D-dimer measurement and multidetector CT. In patients with a contraindication to CT, lower limb venous ultrasonography and ventilation-perfusion scintigraphy remain valid options. Massive pulmonary embolism is a distinct clinical entity with a specific diagnostic approach. In unstable patients with suspected pulmonary embolism, echocardiography should be the initial test.

• Authors: Marc Righini, Helia Robert-Ebadi, Grégoire Le Gal
• Journal: Presse medicale (Paris, France : 1983) (Presse Med) Vol. 44 Issue 12 Pt 2 Pg. e385-91 (Dec 2015) ISSN: 2213-0276 [Electronic] France
• PMID: 26585743 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Review)
• Copyright: Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Chemical References

• Fibrin Fibrinogen Degradation Products
• fibrin fragment D

Topics

• Echocardiography (methods)
• Fibrin Fibrinogen Degradation Products (analysis)
• Humans
• Multidetector Computed Tomography (methods)
• Protein Multimerization
• Pulmonary Embolism (diagnosis, diagnostic imaging)
• Radionuclide Imaging
• Venous Thrombosis (diagnostic imaging)
• Ventilation-Perfusion Ratio