Case Report: Unprovoked venous thromboembolism in a young adult male [version 2; peer review: 2 approved]

Abstract

A 24-year-old male was presented to us with sudden onset of chest pain and dyspnea for the past one hour. There was no history of calf pain, trauma, surgery, prolonged immobilization, long-haul air travel, bleeding diathesis or any other co-morbidity. The patient denied any addiction history. The heart rate was 114 beats/min, and blood pressure was 106/90 mmHg. Electrocardiogram showed tachycardia with S 1Q 3T 3 pattern. The left arterio-venous Doppler study was suggestive of a thrombus in popliteal vein and sapheno-popliteal junction. The CT-Pulmonary Angiogram scan was suggestive of a massive pulmonary thromboembolism. The patient was thrombolysed with Intravenous Alteplase immediately and was put on tab Rivaroxaban for maintenance. He was later discharged after being stable. Unprovoked venous thromboembolism (VTE) is very rare and has the potential to lead to pulmonary embolism which could be disastrous, especially in young adults. We present such a case where unprovoked VTE was diagnosed and treated. This case suggests that high clinical suspicion is the key for the diagnosis of acute pulmonary embolism, especially in the absence of history suggestive of deep vein thrombosis.