Pulmonary Embolism: More Missed Than Detected
Md. Mehedi Hasan1, Mustaq Adnan1, H.M. Aminur Rashid1, Monjurul Alam2, Sanwar Nawaz Khan2, Titop Kumar Bala2, Md. Khairul Hassan Jessy3, A.H.M. Raihanuzzaman Sarkar4
Abstract
Pulmonary embolism (PE) remains a clinically challenging diagnosis, more often missed than found, with
no decline in its incidental discovery at autopsy over the past 30 years. Pulmonary embolism should be
considered in the differential diagnosis of every dyspnoea event that presents at an emergency department.
Pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis are diagnoses that are commonly made in the emergency
department. Well known risk factors for thrombo-embolic events include immobility, malignancy, pregnancy,
surgery, and acquired or inherited thrombophilias, obesity, cigarette smoking, and hypertension. We present
a case of a 60-year-old male who developed leg swelling and was found to have PE and DVT. This case
report emphasizes early diagnosis and treatment of pulmonary embolism to avoid fatal outcome.
Keywords: Pulmonary embolism, Dyspnoea.
Abbreviations: PE= Pulmonary Embolism, DVT= Deep Venous Thrombosis, FOB= Fiber Optic
Bronchoscopy, BAL= Broncho-Alveolar Lavage, CT= Computed Tomography