Pulmonary Embolism-Related Mortality Remained Unchanged From 2006 to 2019

FRIDAY, Sept. 8, 2023 (HealthDay News) — Mortality related to pulmonary embolism (PE) has remained unchanged since 2006 and is higher among men, Black patients, and those living in rural areas, according to a study published online Aug. 8 in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society.

Mohamed Zghouzi, M.D., from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and colleagues examined the national mortality trends related to acute PE and determined the overall age-adjusted mortality rate (AAMR) per 100,000 population in a retrospective cohort analysis using mortality data for individuals aged 15 years and older with PE listed as the cause of death.

The national dataset included 109,992 PE-related deaths between 2006 and 2019. The researchers found that from 2006 to 2019, there was no significant change in the AAMR (2.84 to 2.81 per 100,000; average annual percentage change [AAPC], 0.2). Throughout the study period, there was a significant increase in the AAMR for men compared with women (AAPC, 0.7 for men versus −0.4 for women). The AAMR for PE increased from 5.18 to 5.26 per 100,000 for Black patients (AAPC, 0.4) and from 2.82 to 2.86 per 100,000 for White patients (AAPC, 0.0). During the study period, the AAMR for PE was higher in rural areas than in micropolitan and large metropolitan areas (4.07 versus 3.24 and 2.32 per 100,000, respectively).

“These findings are surprising and counterintuitive to the advancement in care for patients with pulmonary embolism over the last decade, as well as other studies suggesting a downward trajectory in mortality from other major causes of cardiovascular death,” Zghouzi said in a statement.

Several authors disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical and medical device industries.

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