Pulmonary embolism causes
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Editor(s)-In-Chief: The APEX Trial Investigators, C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-In-Chief: Cafer Zorkun, M.D., Ph.D. [2] Ogheneochuko Ajari, MB.BS, MS [3]
Overview
Pulmonary embolism (PE) is the acute obstruction of the pulmonary artery or one of its branches by a thrombus, air, tumor, or fat. Most often, PE is due to a venous thrombus which has been dislodged from its site of formation in the deep veins of the lower extremities, a process referred to as venous thromboembolism.
Causes
Life Threatening Causes
Life-threatening causes include conditions which may result in death or permanent disability within 24 hours if left untreated. Pulmonary embolism is a life-threatening condition and must be treated as such irrespective of the underlying cause.
Common Causes
- The most common cause of PE is a venous thrombus which has been dislodged from its site of formation in the deep veins of the lower extremities.
- Non-thrombotic causes of PE are:
Causes by Organ System
| Cardiovascular | No underlying causes |
| Chemical/Poisoning | No underlying causes |
| Dental | No underlying causes |
| Dermatologic | No underlying causes |
| Drug Side Effect | No underlying causes |
| Ear Nose Throat | No underlying causes |
| Endocrine | No underlying causes |
| Environmental | No underlying causes |
| Gastroenterologic | No underlying causes |
| Genetic | No underlying causes |
| Hematologic | No underlying causes |
| Iatrogenic | No underlying causes |
| Infectious Disease | No underlying causes |
| Musculoskeletal/Orthopedic | No underlying causes |
| Neurologic | No underlying causes |
| Nutritional/Metabolic | No underlying causes |
| Obstetric/Gynecologic | No underlying causes |
| Oncologic | No underlying causes |
| Ophthalmologic | No underlying causes |
| Overdose/Toxicity | No underlying causes |
| Psychiatric | No underlying causes |
| Pulmonary | No underlying causes |
| Renal/Electrolyte | No underlying causes |
| Rheumatology/Immunology/Allergy | No underlying causes |
| Sexual | No underlying causes |
| Trauma | No underlying causes |
| Urologic | No underlying causes |
| Miscellaneous | No underlying causes |
Causes in Alphabetical Order
- Amniotic fluid
- Antiphospholipid syndrome
- Antithrombin III deficiency
- Asthma
- Behcet's disease
- Bevacizumab
- Bone fractures
- Cancer
- Cancer surgery
- Chronic renal disease
- Colorectal cancer
- Corticobasal degeneration
- Deep vein thrombosis
- Dyslipidemia
- Embolism
- Essential thrombocythemia
- Essential thrombocytosis
- Factor V Leiden mutation
- Factor XII deficiency
- Familial dysfibrinogenemia
- Fat
- Glucocorticoids
- Heart failure
- Heparin cofactor II deficiency
- Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia
- Hormone replacement therapy
- Hughes-Stovin syndrome
- Hypercholesterolemia
- Hyperhomocysteinemia
- Hypertension
- Hyperviscosity
- Immobilization
- Infection
- Inflammatory bowel disease
- Injury
- Intravenous drug use
- Lenalidomide
- Liver disease
- Lung cancer
- Malignancy
- May-Thurner syndrome
- Meadows syndrome
- Nephrotic syndrome
- Neuroleptic malignant syndrome
- Neurosurgery
- Oral contraceptives
- Orthopedic surgery
- Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome
- Paget-Schroetter disease
- Pancreatic cancer
- Paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria
- Pelvic vein thrombosis
- Plasminogen deficiency
- Polycystic ovary syndrome
- Polycythemia vera
- Pregnancy
- Presence of central venous catheter
- Prostate cancer
- Protein C deficiency
- Protein S deficiency
- Prothrombin gene mutation G20210A
- Renal cell carcinoma
- Renal transplantation
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Surgery
- Tamoxifen
- Testosterone
- Thalidomide
- Thromboembolism
- Thrombosis
- Transdermal contraceptive
- Trauma
- Tuberculosis
- Vascular surgery