Pulmonary embolism in the elderly

A retrospective study was made of a consecutive series of patients over 65 years of age diagnosed as having a pulmonary embolus by either ventilation-perfusion lung scan or at necropsy. No clinical features were particularly helpful in making the diagnosis though signs of deep-vein thrombosis were present in 35%. Anticoagulants were well tolerated by all patients to whom they were prescribed. Postmortem findings showed a decreasing frequency of pulmonary emboli in the elderly which may indicate a reduction in predisposing factors.