Pulmonary embolism

What is a Pulmonary Embolism?

Pulmonary embolism is a life-threatening condition in which one of the lung's arteries is blocked affecting ventilation. The blood flow to the heart is occluded and thus increases the pressure on the right ventricle. The blockage is usually a blood clot/s that has travelled from a different area of the body such as from the deep vein of the leg. This is usually due to deep vein thrombosis

It is a blockage in one of the pulmonary arteries in the lungs that tends to damage certain parts of the lung, because of restricted blood flow and a decrease in oxygen levels in the blood. Slowly and gradually, they start affecting other organs too. The minor clots do not really harm a patient but large or multiple blood clots could turn out to be fatal. Consequently, blockages often turn out to be serious, resulting in the death of one-third of all people, in whose cases it is left undiagnosed and/or untreated.

These blood clots may have formed for various reasons, like collagen, tumour or air bubbles, but mostly, these form because of Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT). DVT is a condition in which blood circulation to the portions of the lungs served by each blocked artery is hindered.