No abstract

In this retrospective study, cardiovascular risk factors of patients with acute limb ischemia (ALI) were compared with those of intermittent claudication (IC). Furthermore, the association of ALI with environmental temperature and/or hematocrit level was tested. A total of 436 patients treated for ALI and 832 patients with IC were included in the analysis. Diabetes (P = .0001), smoking (P < .0001), and hypertension (P < .0001) were significantly less prevalent in the patients with ALI. Patients with IC had a higher rate of coronary artery disease (P = .003), and patients with ALI had a higher rate of cerebrovascular disease (P < .0001). There was no association between the outside temperature or hematocrit level and the occurrence of ALI. The hypothesis of seasonal incidence of ALI could not be confirmed, and there was no association of ALI with the hematocrit level.

Zusammenfassung Hintergrund Kürzlich veröffentliche Studien zeigen eine steigende Inzidenz für die Lungenarterienembolie (LE) bei gleichzeitigem Rückgangs der LE-assoziierten Mortalität. Ziel der Studie Detaillierte Daten zur Mortalität der LE in Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz (DACH-Region) sind derzeit nicht vorhanden. Material und Methoden Datensätze wurden aus der Mortalitätsdatenbank der Weltgesundheitsorganisation (WHO) ausgewertet. Hierbei analysierten wir die Häufigkeit sowohl der akuten LE als auch der tiefen/oberflächlichen Venenthrombose als primärer Todesursache. Ergebnisse Demnach sank die jährliche altersstandardisierte Mortalität zwischen Januar 2000 und Dezember 2015 von 15,6 auf 7,8 Todesfälle pro 1000 Einwohner. Zwischen Januar 2012 und Dezember 2016 ereigneten sich in der DACH-Region (Bevölkerungsanzahl: 98.273.320 Menschen) durchschnittlich 9127 durch LE verursache Todesfälle pro Jahr. Interessanterweise ist LE–assoziierte Gesamtmortalität bei Frauen zwischen dem 15. und 55. Lebensjahr deutlich höher als bei gleichaltrigen Männern. Schlussfolgerung Der Rückgang der Mortalität durch die Erkrankung LE seit dem Jahr 2000 ist vermutlich durch eine verbesserte Patientenversorgung mit Einführung neuer Antikoagulanzien und durch den vermehrten Einsatz und diagnostischen Fortschritt bei den computertomographischen Untersuchungen erklärt. Festzuhalten ist, dass die LE eine wichtige Todesursache vor allem im höheren Alter darstellt. Außerdem ist der Anteil der Frauen im gebärfähigen Alter, die nach einer akuten LE sterben, mit 3,5 % hoch. Daher sind, trotz des medizinischen Fortschritts, weitere Anstrengungen für eine Verbesserung der Prävention, Diagnostik und Therapie, aber insbesondere auch des Krankheitsbewusstseins notwendig.

Funding Acknowledgements Type of funding sources: None. Background Little is known about the burden imposed by pulmonary embolism for Germany, Austria and Switzerland (DACH countries). Purpose We aimed to assess pulmonary embolism-related mortality and time trends for the DACH countries based on data from the WHO Mortality Database. Methods We analysed vital registration data from the WHO Mortality Database (2000–2016) covering subregions of the WHO European Region: Germany, Switzerland and Austria (DACH countries). Deaths were considered pulmonary embolism-related if International Classification of Disease-10 code for acute pulmonary embolism or any code for deep or superficial vein thrombosis was listed as the primary cause of death. Results Between 2000 and 2016, age-standardised annual pulmonary embolism-related mortality rates decreased linearly from 15.6 to 7.8 deaths per 1000 population. In the 5-year period between 2012 and 2016 an average of 9127 pulmonary embolism-related deaths occurred annually in the DACH countries with a population of 98 273 329. Interestingly, pulmonary embolism-related mortality rates were considerable higher among women aged 15-55 years compared to age-matched men. Between 2012 and 2016, Germany showed the highest age-adjusted mortality rate (9.2 to 10.8 per 100000 inhabitants) compared to Switzerland 4.9-5.3 per 100000 inhabitants) and Austria (5.2 to 6.0 per 100000 inhabitants). Moreover, this means that the age-adjusted mortality rate in Germany was higher than the West-European average. Conclusion The observed decreasing trends in pulmonary embolism-related mortality might reflect improved management of the disease including new treatment options as well as advances in imaging technologies. However, pulmonary embolism remains a substantial contributor to total mortality, especially among women aged 15–55 years. For this reason, campaigns to increase physician and public awareness are urgently required for further improvement of the management and treatment of this preventable thrombotic disorder, which still remains the leading preventable cause of death.

The clinical spectrum of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) ranges from asymptomatic cases to severe pneumonia with acute respiratory distress syndrome. COVID-19 is associated with an increased risk of thromboembolic complications, notably pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis. Arterial cardiovascular complications and myocarditis have also been described in association with COVID-19, but appear to be less prevalent. In this report of a 57-year-old man with multiple splanchnic infarctions, arterial dissections and COVID-19 as the sole potential trigger, we describe a novel type of complications and put it in the context of a growing literature on this topic.