{"id":2432,"date":"2022-09-26T20:55:14","date_gmt":"2022-09-26T20:55:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/?p=2432"},"modified":"2022-09-26T20:55:15","modified_gmt":"2022-09-26T20:55:15","slug":"pulmonary-embolism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/?p=2432","title":{"rendered":"Pulmonary Embolism"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Pulmonary-embolism1-1024x768.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2511\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Pulmonary-embolism1-1024x768.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Pulmonary-embolism1-300x225.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Pulmonary-embolism1-768x576.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Pulmonary-embolism1-1536x1152.png 1536w, https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Pulmonary-embolism1-2048x1536.png 2048w, https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Pulmonary-embolism1-750x563.png 750w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3>What is a pulmonary embolism (PE)?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>A pulmonary embolism (PE) is a sudden blockage in a lung artery. It usually happens when a\u00a0blood clot\u00a0breaks loose and travels through the bloodstream to the lungs. PE is a serious condition that can cause:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Permanent damage to the lungs<\/li><li>Low oxygen levels in the blood<\/li><li>Damage to other organs in the body from not getting enough oxygen<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>PE can be life-threatening, especially if a clot is large, or if there are many clots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3>What causes a pulmonary embolism (PE)?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The cause is usually a blood clot in the leg called a deep vein thrombosis that breaks loose and travels through the bloodstream to the lungs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3>Who is at risk for a pulmonary embolism (PE)?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Anyone can get a pulmonary embolism (PE), but certain things can raise the risk of PE:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><strong>Having surgery,<\/strong>\u00a0especially joint replacement surgery<\/li><li><strong>Certain medical conditions,<\/strong>\u00a0including<ul><li>Cancers<\/li><li>Heart diseases<\/li><li>Lung diseases<\/li><li>A broken hip or leg bone or other trauma<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li><strong>Hormone-based medicines,<\/strong>\u00a0such as\u00a0birth control pills\u00a0or\u00a0hormone replacement therapy<\/li><li><strong>Pregnancy and childbirth.<\/strong>\u00a0The risk is highest for about six weeks after childbirth.<\/li><li><strong>Not moving for long periods,<\/strong>\u00a0such as being on bed rest, having a cast, or taking a long plane flight<\/li><li><strong>Age.<\/strong>\u00a0The risk increases as one gets older, especially after age 40.<\/li><li><strong>Family history and genetics.<\/strong>\u00a0Certain genetic changes that can increase the risk of blood clots and PE.<\/li><li><strong>Obesity<\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3>What are the symptoms of a pulmonary embolism (PE)?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Half the people who have pulmonary embolism have no symptoms.   Symptoms include shortness of breath, chest pain or coughing up blood. Symptoms of a blood clot include warmth, swelling, pain, tenderness and redness of the leg.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3>How is a pulmonary embolism (PE) diagnosed?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>It can be difficult to diagnose PE. To make a diagnosis, a physician  will:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Take a medical history, including asking about symptoms and risk factors for PE<\/li><li>Do a physical exam<\/li><li>Run some tests, including various\u00a0imaging tests\u00a0and possibly some blood tests<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3>What are the treatments for a pulmonary embolism (PE)?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Patients with PE need medical treatment right away. The goal of treatment is to break up clots and help keep other clots from forming. Treatment options include medicines and procedures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Medicines<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><strong>Anticoagulants,<\/strong>\u00a0or\u00a0blood thinners, keep blood clots from getting larger and stop new clots from forming. <\/li><li><strong>Thrombolytics<\/strong>\u00a0are medicines to dissolve blood clots. <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Procedures<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><strong>Catheter-assisted thrombus removal<\/strong>\u00a0uses a flexible tube to reach a blood clot in the lung. <\/li><li><strong>A vena cava filter<\/strong>\u00a0may be used in some people who cannot take blood thinners. Y<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3>Can pulmonary embolism (PE) be prevented?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Preventing new blood clots can prevent PE. Prevention may include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Continuing to take blood thinners. <\/li><li>Heart-healthy lifestyle changes, such as heart-healthy eating, exercise, and, smoking cessation<\/li><li>Moving the legs when sitting for long periods of time (such as on long trips)<\/li><li>Moving around as soon as possible after surgery or being confined to a bed<\/li><\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What is a pulmonary embolism (PE)? A pulmonary embolism (PE) is a sudden blockage in a lung artery. It usually happens when a\u00a0blood clot\u00a0breaks loose and travels through the bloodstream to the lungs. PE is a serious condition that can cause: Permanent damage to the lungs Low oxygen levels in the blood Damage to other [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[23],"tags":[76],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2432"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2432"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2432\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2513,"href":"https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2432\/revisions\/2513"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2432"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2432"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.georgiaemsacademy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2432"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}