Pulmonary embolism

Death from massive PE is one of the most common causes of unexpected death, being second only to coronary artery disease as a cause of sudden unexpected natural death at any age. Most clinicians do not appreciate the extent of the problem, because the diagnosis is unsuspected until autopsy in approximately 80% of cases. Although PE often is fatal, prompt diagnosis and treatment can reduce the mortality dramatically.

Patients who survive an acute PE are at high risk for recurrent PE and for the development of pulmonary hypertension and chronic pulmonary heart disease, attendant mortality and morbidity.

Although the frequency of PE increases with age, age is not an independent risk factor. Rather, it is the accumulation of other risk factors, such as underlying illness and decreased mobility, that causes the appearance of PE with increased frequency in older patients.Several papers suggest that the incidence of PE may differ substantially from country to country, but there are no prospective controlled studies to lend support to this notion. It is possible that the observed variance is due to differences in the rate of diagnosis more than differences in the rate of the disease. If there is a real difference, it is not known whether the difference is due to genetic variation, or whether it can be ascribed to population differences in diet and activity. There may be subtle population differences in the incidence of DVT and PE, but the incidence is high in all racial groups.

In the UK, an average of one passenger per month dies of a pulmonary embolism caused by deep vein thrombosis soon after landing at London's Heathrow airport.