[Patients with lung emboli and hemodynamic stability: insufficient evidence for routine thrombolysis]

Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a common disorder requiring prompt anticoagulant treatment. As spiral CT has become the first-line test for PE diagnosis, physicians will likely be increasingly confronted with patients displaying large centrally located pulmonary emboli. Evidence from literature supporting the use ofthrombolytic drugs in patients with PE is sparse, since only one small trial has demonstrated that these drugs can reduce short-term mortality in patients with emboli and shock. Patients with PE can present without massive arterial hypotension but with signs of right ventricular dysfunction on echocardiography or CT. One recent randomised trial evaluated whether these haemodynamically stable patients would benefit from thrombolytic therapy. However, no definitive conclusions can be drawn from this study. Potentially, other prognostic markers including brain type natriuretic peptide may be better predictors of suitable candidates for thrombolytic therapy. It is concluded that based on current knowledge, patients with PE who presentwithout arterial hypotension should not routinely be treated with thrombolytic drugs, irrespective of whether they display central emboli on CT or not.