Unorthodox Clinical and Roentgenological Features of Pulmonary Embolism

¹ The New York Medical College and Metropolitan Hospital.

Contrary to what the text books would have us believe, in reviewing cases of patients with embolism, one does not always find the symptoms of chest pain, cough with bloody expectoration, dyspnea, jaundice, and the local lower extremity findings of venous thrombi. Pulmonary embolism takes on many guises, and may masquerade as what appears to be dry or wet pleurisy, bronchitis, bronchopneumonia, lobar pneumonia, pulmonary tuberculosis, cor pulmonale, or unexplained shock. The physician should not treat pulmonary embolism by exorcism. Whether bilateral venous ligation or possibly the administration of heparin or dicumarol is undertaken, the patient will require the most assiduous attention. Long delay has resulted in unnecessary death. We are derelict of duty if the post mortem establishes the true cause of death as a disease that might have been curable.