The diagnosis and management of postoperative pulmonary embolism / 中华普通外科杂志

ABSTRACT

ObjectiveTo evaluate the diagnosis and treatment of postoperative pulmonary embolism(PE). MethodsWe retrospectively analyzed clinical manifestations,diagnosis,treatment and prognosis of 51 postoperative PE. Results36 PE (70.59％ ) developed after orthopaedic surgery or with malignant tumors within 1 week after surgery.Dyspnea or chest distress was the most common symptoms.Sudden death was common in patients with PE.Problems in diagnosis of PE includedpoor assessment of deep vein thrombosis(DVT) before operation,and the value of beside echocardiography in the diagnosis of patients with suspected high-risk PE was not fully recognized. Twenty-three PE cases received only anticogulant treatment.Intravenous thrombolysis or percutaneous interventional techniques were undertaken in 3 each cases.Cardiopulmonary resuscitation(CPR) simply after sudden death due to postoperative PE was often unsuccessful.ConclusionsPostoperative PE is a common cause of death,currently available measures are often ineffective.The key lies in prevention especially in those of high-risk PE or suspected non-high-risk PE.