Prognostic Value of Symptoms and Signs in Geriatric Acute Pulmonary Embolism—An Analytical Study

Abstract

Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between symptoms and short-term mortality in geriatric patients presenting to the emergency department with acute pulmonary embolism. Materials and Methods This retrospective cohort study was conducted to evaluate the data of geriatric patients admitted to the emergency department between September 01, 2022, and March 01, 2023. The study population comprised patients who presented with acute pulmonary embolism signs and symptoms. Demographic data, vital parameters, and symptoms were noted. Results Of the 176 patients included in the final analysis, 55 (31.2%) were female. The median of age was 76 (25th–75th percentile: 72–82.5) years. The most common symptoms were dyspnea (61.9%), fatigue (27.2%), and syncope (23.8%). There was no statistically significant difference between the survivor and nonsurvivor groups in terms of symptoms (p-values for dyspnea, syncope, chest pain, back pain, hemoptysis, extremity pain, and fatigue: 0.804, 0.765, 0.154, 0.543, 0.675, 0.342, and 0.943, respectively) (chi-squared test). Conclusion In patients presenting to the emergency department with acute pulmonary embolism, clinicians should not prioritize based on symptoms but should evaluate patients according to clinical severity scores.