Pulmonary Embolism, Syncope
Conditions
Keywords
syncope, pulmonary embolism
Brief summary
All patients consecutively referred with the first episode of transient and short-lasting loss of consciousness will have a diagnostic workup for the assessment of the most common causes of syncope, and will be evaluated for the presence of pulmonary embolism (PE) with the use of an internationally accepted algorithm including a pre-test clinical probability (PTP according to the method of Wells et al.) and a high-sensitivity quantitative D-dimer assay. If the PTP is low and D-dimer negative, PE will be excluded. All other patients will undergo confirmatory diagnostic tests (either computerized tomography or ventilation/perfusion lung scanning) in order to confirm or rule out the presence of PE.
Interventions
OTHERLung CT or V/Q scanning in patients with a high pre-test clinical probability of PE and/or a positive D-dimer
Sponsors
University of Padova
Study design
Allocation
NA
Intervention model
SINGLE_GROUP
Primary purpose
DIAGNOSTIC
Masking
NONE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* first episode of syncope
Exclusion criteria
* previous episodes of syncope * ongoing anticoagulation * age younger than 18 years * pregnancy
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| To assess the prevalence of PE in a large series of consecutive patients presenting with the first episode of syncope | Up to 48 hours after hospital admission |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| To assess the prevalence of pulmonary embolism in patients with apparently unexplained syncope | Up to one week after hospital admission |
Other
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| To assess the prevalence of pulmonary embolism in patients with syncope with a high pre-test probability of PE and/or a positive D-dimer | Up to 48 hours after admission |
Countries
Italy
Outcome results
None listed