FAQs

Certain cancers increase the risk of a blood clot fourfold, and chemotherapy increases risk up to six-fold, so preventive use of anticoagulants is usually wise. Discuss this with your doctor.

This depends upon age, health, and underlying medical conditions, as well as the cause of the PE.

One-third to two-thirds.

The risk varies depending on the location of the clot. The risk for a PE increases the higher up in the leg the DVT occurs. For example, a calf DVT has a lower risk of breaking off and becoming a PE than a clot behind the knee or one in the groin or pelvic veins. Essentially, the larger the vein with the clot, the greater the risk of developing a PE.

A DVT is often the source of a clot that travels to the lung arteries and becomes a PE.

A pulled calf muscle usually gets better in a day or two. Another sign of a DVT is bluish or reddish skin discoloration, and skin that is warm to touch. These other signs do not usually happen with a pulled muscle. Learn more about DVT diagnosis.

Yes. PE mimics many other diseases and is particularly difficult to diagnose. Learn more about a PE diagnosis.

To rule out pneumonia, another common cause of chest pain and breathing difficulty. Learn more about PE diagnosis. 

It is the best current non-invasive technique for detecting a PE. Spiral CT (computed tomography) imaging is a new non-invasive technique being developed and has potential for replacing the VQ scan. Read more about PE diagnosis.

If a VQ scan does not identify a clot, but one is still suspected, a pulmonary angiogram is performed. A catheter is threaded through a vein in the groin, passed through the heart, and into the pulmonary artery. Contrast dye is then injected and X-rays are taken to monitor the blood flow in the lung. The angiogram will give a definite diagnosis as to the presence of a clot. Occasionally, an echocardiogram will show abnormalities in heart function, particularly in the right ventricle, as it meets resistance in pumping blood into the lungs. Learn more about PE diagnosis.