Pulmonary embolism is higher among Blacks in US, a new study shows.

Pulmonary embolism is a condition that occurs when one or more arteries in the lungs become blocked. In most cases, pulmonary embolism is caused by blood clots that travel to the lungs from another part of your body — most commonly, your legs.


Pulmonary embolism can occur in otherwise healthy people. It can be life-threatening, but prompt treatment with anti-clotting medications can greatly reduce the risk of death.
A new study of 1,960 White-Americans and 368 Black-Americans with objectively diagnosed venous thromboembolism (VTE) showed that, compared to Whites, Blacks had a significantly higher proportion with pulmonary embolism (PE), including idiopathic PE among Black women, and a significantly higher proportion of Blacks with VTE were women (71% vs 61% for Whites) The study is published today in the American Journal of Hematology.

VTE is blood clots in veins and consists of deep vein thrombosis (DVT), a blood clot in the “inner” or “deep” vein, typically of the leg or pelvis, and its complication, PE, a dislodged DVT that has traveled with the returning blood to the heart and become lodged in the lungs. Most epidemiologic studies of VTE risk factors have been conducted within White-American and -European populations. However, compared to Whites, Black-Americans appear to have a higher risk and incidence of VTE. Two single nucleotide polymorphisms (DNA sequence variations), factor V Leiden (G1691A) and prothrombin (G20210A), have been identified as risk factors for DVT and PE in Europeans and White-Americans, but not Black- Americans.