title: Incidence of post-thrombotic syndrome in patients with previous pulmonary embolism. A retrospective cohort study.
abstract: There is little information available about the true incidence of post-thrombotic syndrome (PTS) after pulmonary embolism (PE). The aim of this study was to investigate the incidence of PTS in patients with previous pulmonary embolism without concomitant ultrasonographically-detectable deep vein thrombosis (DVT). A retrospective cohort study was conducted at a single tertiary care centre, Cosenza, Italy. Forty-seven consecutive patients with proved PE without DVT within the previous 2 to 6 years, 45 patients with previous DVT in the same years, and 45 patients with diseases unrelated to venous thromboembolism (VTE) underwent a blind assessment for PTS using a clinical score. Two of 47 (4.2%, 95%CI: 0.01-9.9) patients with PE, 2 of 45 (4.4%, 95%CI: 0.01-10.4) patients with diseases unrelated to VTE, and 23 of 45 (53.3%, 95%CI: 38.7-67.9) patients with DVT showed signs and symptoms of PTS. The difference between the first two groups was not statistically significant (p = 0.7). In conclusion, the incidence of PTS after pulmonary embolism without DVT is low, and no different from that of patients without previous VTE.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Annunziata General Hospital, Cosenza, Italy. carbova@libero.it
authors.forename: Carlo
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bova
authors.forename: Vincenza
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Rossi
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ricchio
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Greco
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bloise
authors.forename: Filomena
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Daniele
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Greco
authors.forename: Alfonso
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Noto
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011186:Postphlebitic Syndrome / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D011655:Pulmonary Embolism / Q000150:complications*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D020246:Venous Thrombosis / Q000150:complications*