Everything You Should Know About Pulmonary Embolism

Diagnosis

A pulmonary embolism is difficult to diagnose because many of the symptoms are similar to those of other conditions, such as a heart attack, pneumonia, or a panic attack. In most cases, a physician will begin by performing a physical examination and asking a patient a series of questions about his or her health and symptoms. The following tests are available to check for a pulmonary embolism: an electrocardiogram (EKG) to test the heart’s electrical activity, an arterial blood gas study to measure gasses in the blood, an X-ray of the internal organs, a pulmonary scan to analyze the ventilation and architectural structure of the lungs, an ultrasound, or a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan. Other tests include a D-Dimer test, which is a blood test that can detect thrombosis, and a pulmonary angiogram to detect blood clots in the lungs.