Acute pulmonary embolism in the emergency department: What do the guidelines say?

The therapeutic strategy of acute pulmonary embolism (PE) is based on risk stratification of early mortality in the emergency deportment. Anticoagulant therapy should be given to all PE patients as early as possible, and direct oral anticoagulants are expected to replace vitamin K antagonists in the majority of cases. The use of a reperfusion strategy should always be considered in patients with high-risk PE defined as PE with clinical hemodynamic instability. Surgical or percutaneous embolectomy is an alternative in case of contraindication to thrombolytic therapy in these patients. Intermediate-risk PEs defined by a sPESI score of >= 1 warrant hospitalization, and continuous care monitoring for patients presenting with elevated biomarkers and right ventricular dysfunction. low risk PEs (sPESI = 0) could be managed on an outpatient basis, provided that a care pathway had been defined beforehand.