OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the occurrence and the correlation between pulmonary embolism (PE) and deep venous thrombosis (DVT) using a single CT angiography protocol. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a prospective study performed at Hospital Copa D'Or, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil from July 2003 to June 2004. We analyzed 116 CT angiography examinations of patients with clinical suspicion of PE. After an interval of approximately three minutes, venous phase images from the diaphragm to the knees were acquired without additional contrast injection in order to determine the presence of DVT. RESULTS: From the 116 patients studied, 23 (19.8%) had PE, 24 (20.7%) had DVT, 15 (12.9%) had both PE and DVT and 9 (7.8%) had DVT alone. Among the 23 cases of PE, 15 (65.2%) had concomitant DVT whereas 8 (34.8%) had only PE. Among the 24 cases of DVT, 15 (62.5%) had associated PE and 9 (37.5%) had DVT alone. CONCLUSION: The results showed a strong relationship between PE and DVT, as well as the importance of investigating DVT in cases with suspected PE and the benefits of performing indirect CT venography after pulmonary CT angiography as a single examination alternative method for simultaneous investigation of PE and DVT.
Pulmonary embolism; Deep venous thrombosis; Computed tomography angiography; Lungs
