Signs of Pulmonary Embolism

An artery blockage by a foreign body, such as a blood clot/fat/air/cholesterol/amniotic fluid, is called an embolism. The most serious conditions caused by an embolism are stroke and pulmonary embolism. Pulmonary embolism (PE) occurs when a foreign body blocks the vessel that carries blood from the heart to the lungs. Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) has the potential to embolize and travel through the right side of the heart and become lodged in the blood-supplying artery of the lungs: the pulmonary artery. DVT is one of the major causes of pulmonary embolism. Pulmonary embolism is a life-threatening disease that can sometimes be problematic to point at, especially when the patient has no obvious symptoms. The risk factors may not be strikingly palpable, and there may also be an intersection between the symptoms and signs of pulmonary embolism and other diseases. Syncope is a comparatively easy clinical symptom to detect but has varied etiologies that lead to a standard cause in only 58% ...

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Key Takeaways Recent findings suggest that forehead thermometers may inaccurately measure temperature in Black and dark-skinned individuals. Infrared technology in forehead and ear thermometers is quick and convenient, but lacks the accuracy of oral thermometers. Until further research provides better evidence, families (primarily Black and dark-skinned) may want to rely on oral thermometers. A recent research letter published in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed that forehead thermometers—called temporal thermometers—are more likely than oral thermometers to miss fevers in Black patients. While the Emory University researchers behind the letter aren't the first to suggest forehead thermometers are imperfect tools, they're raising new concerns about the health disparities that temperature checks can create. Hospitals often use defined temperature measurements for specific interventions, such a collecting a culture (say, a th...

A pulmonary embolism (PE) blocks the pulmonary artery from supplying blood to the lungs. A person's life expectancy with a PE depends on the type and severity of the embolism. It also depends on how quickly the person receives a diagnosis and treatment. Approximately 1–2 in every 1,000 people are affected by a PE each year in the United States (U.S.). This figure makes the condition the third-highest cause of cardiovascular mortality in the U.S. Life expectancy with a PE depends on the type of embolism, a person's age, and overall health. However, most people can fully recover from a PE if doctors can diagnose and treat them early on. Read on about the symptoms and risk factors of PEs, the life expectancy, mortality rates, and outlook for a person diagnosed with PE. PE is a potentially life threatening blockage in the pulmonary artery. It causes a blood clot to travel through the bloodstream and reach the lungs. Common symptoms of PE may include: pain associated with deep bre...

Wheezing is a sensation that occurs when a person breathes through obstructed airways. Some people find that their wheezing gets worse when lying down. This can occur because lying down may adversely affect the ability of the chest to rise and fall, making it difficult to breathe. Lying down may also cause problems with mucus drainage from the nose, which could trigger a cough. Wheezing is a common symptom of asthma, allergies, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and obstructive sleep apnea. In this article, we will take a closer look at the potential causes of wheezing when lying down and their treatments. We will also provide tips on how to sleep while experiencing this symptom. Asthma is a chronic condition that affects over 300 million people worldwide. It is characterized by coughing, wheezing, or shortness of breath. It is common for asthma symptoms to affect people at night. This is known as nocturnal asthma. The symptoms of nocturnal asthma can include: chest tightness shor...

Growing Up With Asthma "When I was a small child, a doctor told my mom I may not live to see 16 years old, right in front of me. Another told my mom I may have the worst asthma in Colorado history; it was the worst he had ever seen. My early youth was spent endlessly sick with asthma and it was in the forefront of my mind reminding me of what I 'couldn't do.' I was in and out of the hospital, often in intensive care, particularly around the holidays — spending Thanksgiving, Halloween, and Christmas struggling to breathe. I was woken up every four hours for a 'breathing treatment' — screaming, crying, and begging my mom to make it stop, while being held down to have blood drawn and IV's inserted. My nose would be sore and raw from the consistent delivery of oxygen. My chest and back muscles were extremely tender and it hurt to move from the struggle to breathe. Courtesy of Christina Ayala I was ashamed and humiliated from wetting the hosp...

Chest pain, shortness of breath and a persistent cough can all be symptoms of lung cancer. But they can also be signs of other conditions, including heart problems, anemia and even a COVID-19 infection.  So, how do you know when it's time to call a doctor? "Some lung cancer symptoms warrant immediate attention," says thoracic and cardiovascular surgeon Ara Vaporciyan, M.D. "Others just need to be looked at within two or three weeks. A constant symptom is more of a problem than one that happens only for a short time and then resolves on its own. And combinations of symptoms are more concerning than one is by itself."  Here are the lung cancer symptoms that three of our patients noticed, in their own words. Chest pain or pressure in the chest "I started feeling some weird chest pains in the summer of 2013," says Deborah Schroeder, who was 55 when she received a lung cancer diagnosis. "When you're young, you feel inv...