Clinical presentation and prognosis of acute symptomatic pulmonary embolism in patients with concomitant upper-extremity versus lower-extremity deep vein thrombosis

Abstract

Background The impact of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) location on acute pulmonary embolism (PE) prognosis remains uncertain. Methods Using the Registro Informatizado de Enfermedad TromboEmbólica registry, we assessed 30-day and 90-day outcomes in patients with acute symptomatic PE and concomitant upper-extremity (UEDVT) versus lower-extremity DVT (LEDVT). Cox regression was employed for analysis, and standardised differences (SRD) were used for reporting clinical characteristics to minimise type I error overinflation. The primary outcome was 30-day all-cause mortality, with secondary outcomes including 90-day mortality, fatal PE, venous thromboembolism (VTE) recurrences, and major bleeding. Results Among 21 617 patients with PE (March 2001–April 2023), 508 had UEDVT, and 21 109 had LEDVT. Patients with UEDVT were younger (SRD: 0.231), more often had cancer (SRD: 0.395) or non-central PEs (SRD: 0.445), but less frequently had raised troponin levels (SRD: 0.376) or right ventricle dysfunction (SRD: 0.249). Thirty-day mortality was higher in UEDVT compared with LEDVT (7.3% vs 3.5%; p<0.001), with similar trends at 90 days (14% vs 6.0%) and in subgroup analysis in patients without cancer. Increased rates of PE-related mortality, VTE recurrences and major bleeding were noted in patients with UEDVT at both 30 and 90 days. UEDVT was associated with a higher risk for 30-day (adjusted HR (aHR): 1.49; 95% CI 1.04 to 2.13) and 90-day (aHR: 1.52; 95% CI 1.15 to 2.00) all-cause mortality on multilevel multivariable analysis. Conclusions Patients with concomitant UEDVT experienced worse short-term outcomes, including higher mortality, despite fewer clinical signs of PE severity compared with LEDVT. These findings suggest that unrecognised patient characteristics might influence prognosis, warranting further research. Data are available upon reasonable request.