Prognostic value of a previous medical or surgical admission in outpatients with symptomatic pulmonary embolism

To determine whether an earlier medical (MA) or surgical (SA) admission in the previous three months is a factor associated with mortality at 30 days in outpatients with acute symptomatic pulmonary embolism. Observational, retrospective cohort study on adult patients diagnosed with acute symptomatic pulmonary embolism in a tertiary hospital over a period of 6 years. The study included 870 patients with a mean age of 72.7 years: 10.6% (92) had a prior MA, 4.9% (43) had a SA and 12.9% (112) died within the first 30 days. The MA group showed a higher frequency of simplified Pulmonary Embolism Severity Index (PESI) of high risk (≥1) (MA 90.2% vs SA 65.1% vs no prior admission 67.0%; p