Relationship Between Blood Pressure Index and Right Ventricular Dysfunction and Mortality in Patients With Pulmonary Embolism

Abstract

Objective: Pulmonary embolism is a cardiopulmonary emergency commonly encountered in emergency departments with a high mortality rate. In cases of pulmonary embolism, the prompt and effortless implementation of echocardiography in the emergency department for the identification of right ventricular dysfunction, a significant predictor of mortality, is not always feasible. The aim of this study is to demonstrate the role of the readily available blood pressure index in determining right ventricular dysfunction and mortality in patients with pulmonary embolism.
 
 Material and Methods: A total of 180 patients (90 females and 90 males) who were diagnosed with pulmonary embolism based on computed tomography pulmonary angiography in the emergency department between 2013 and 2019 and subsequently underwent echocardiography were included in the study. The blood pressure index was obtained by dividing the systolic blood pressure by the diastolic blood pressure.
 
 Results: The average blood pressure index of the patients was calculated as 1.7±0.2. There was no statistically significant difference in terms of BPI between the two groups, one with right ventricular dysfunction and the other without right ventricular dysfunction, based on echocardiography (p=0.529). A total of 22.2% of the patients experienced 30-day mortality. There was no significant difference in terms of blood pressure index between the group with observed mortality and the group without observed mortality (p=0.438).
 
 Conclusion: No significant relationship was identified between blood pressure index and right ventricular dysfunction or mortality in patients with pulmonary embolism. However, considering the ease of accessibility and applicability of blood pressure index in emergency departments, we believe it can be considered as a useful parameter. We anticipate that blood pressure index would yield more accurate results in determining right ventricular dysfunction and mortality, especially in patients with pulmonary embolism who have reduced systolic blood pressure.