Pulmonary Embolism: Multidisciplinary Intervention is a Key to Success

Course overview

Pulmonary embolism (PE) falls third behind stroke and myocardial infarction as the most common acute cardiovascular syndrome (Konstantinides, et al., 2019). It is also one of the main causes of mortality in hospitalized patients even though diagnostic and interventional technologies have improved over the last few decades. Most deaths in patients with a high-risk PE occur within the first few hours of symptom onset (Morrone & Morrone, 2018). A main reason suggested for the high mortality rate is the complex nature of the condition, which can make prompt identification extremely challenging. However, rapid treatment initiation is essential. A multidisciplinary approach is important for improving evaluation and management of PE.