Pulmonary Embolism Diagnosis
If you or your loved one is experiencing symptoms of pulmonary embolism, then you must get medical help immediately. A doctor will likely begin with a physical examination. A medical team will look closely at patient’s legs to see if there is swelling, tenderness, warmth, or discoloration. The physical symptoms indicate that you might suffer from a deep clot in one of your veins in the legs. The doctor further might order a series of tests including an ultrasound and a chest X-ray. The patient might also go through blood testing to rule out any other lung diseases. Blood tests can measure the amount of carbon dioxide and oxygen in patient’s blood and also help the doctor to suspect a substance known as D dimer. D dimer is a small protein fragment which is present in the blood after the break down of blood clot by the body. [5]
Some other diagnostic tests for pulmonary embolism include the following:
Computed tomographic pulmonary angiography (CTPA)
Computed tomographic pulmonary angiography (CTPA) is a special type of X-ray scanning and is one of the main imaging tests that the doctors use for the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism. The doctor will insert dye or contrast into patient’s veins so that they are able to look into the blood vessels in the lungs on the X-ray.