Patient's question:
My father suffered from pulmonary embolism, but he recovered after a period of treatment. However, I'm afraid that besides family members, others might also get this disease, so I want to understand this condition better from a doctor. Could you please tell me which methods are available for preventing pulmonary embolism?Doctor's answer:
First and foremost, it is to prevent the formation of blood clots. Emboli mainly originate from long-term bed rest leading to venous stasis in the deep venous system, rheumatic heart disease of the right heart, etc. They may also be caused by fat embolism from trauma, fractures, tumor thrombus cell rupture, bacterial thrombus infection, or excessively high blood viscosity. For the elderly with the above risk factors, if they experience dizziness, shortness of breath, chest tightness, or chest pain multiple times, in addition to paying attention to cardiovascular diseases, the possibility of pulmonary embolism should also be considered. Especially after a careful electrocardiogram examination rules out coronary heart disease, they should immediately go to the respiratory department for definitive diagnosis and rescue.