Pulmonary Embolism

1. Treatment

1.1. Stop clot from growing and prevent further damage

1.1.1. Anticoagulant drugs

1.1.1.1. Heparin

1.1.1.2. Warfarin

1.1.2. Thrombolytics

1.1.2.1. Activase

1.1.2.2. Retavase

1.2. destroy or remove existing clot

1.2.1. Embolectomy

2. Risk factors

2.1. Smoking

2.2. Age

2.3. Long periods of Inactivity

2.4. Obesity

2.5. Pregnancy

3. Prevention

3.1. Compression methods

3.1.1. sleeve

3.1.2. Glove

3.1.3. Boot holds

3.2. Physical activity

3.3. Healthy diet

3.4. Avoid tobacco

4. Diagnosis

4.1. Look at patients history for physical examination

4.1.1. Tests:

4.1.1.1. Electrocardiogram( EKG)

4.1.1.2. Chest X- rays

4.1.1.3. Arterial Blood gas study

4.1.1.4. MRI

5. Causes

5.1. blood clot occurs starting in arm or leg blocking blood flow through artery that feeds the lungs

6. Epidemiology

6.1. Incidence-69 cases per 100,000

6.2. Mortality- 60,000 to 100,000 die each year

7. Symptoms

7.1. Chest pain

7.2. Irregular heartbeat

7.3. Dizziness

7.4. Cough

7.5. Rapid breathing