Clinical-pathological correlation of pulmonary thromboembolism in cardiovascular surgery

Abstract

Introduction: Pulmonary thromboembolism is the condition generated by the interruption of the blood supply to a portion of the lung by a blockage of an afferent vessel. Objective: To compare the clinical-pathologic correlation of the diagnosis of pulmonary thromboembolism in patients undergoing surgery and to describe some related variables. Method: A descriptive-retrospective study was conducted. The sample consisted of 26 patients who had clinical or post-mortem diagnosis of pulmonary thromboembolism. Results: All patients (100%) had tachycardia and tachypnea. Bronchopneumonia and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (40% respectively) were the main causes of misdiagnosis. In the majority of cases (45.4%), the involvement was at the level of the thin branches. Clinical diagnosis was confirmed in 34.8% of patients. The main risk factors that were identified included: major surgery, the need for prolonged bed rest (81.8% respectively), the use of cardiopulmonary bypass and the occurrence of shock (72.7% respectively). Among patients with confirmed diagnosis, 72.7% had an adequate therapeutic dose of heparin. Conclusions: Pulmonary thromboembolism was a rare complication in cardiovascular surgery, and clinical suspicion exceeded the actual existence of the disease, therefore the clinical-pathological correlation was poor.