Key result
Acute PE in Ghana carries ~12% in-hospital mortality alongside underutilized pretest probability assessment.
Why the study?
Pulmonary embolism causes significant morbidity and mortality, but there is a paucity of literature on this condition from the Ghanaian perspective.
In a resource-constrained setting in Ghana, acute pulmonary embolism presented with typical clinical features but was associated with a relatively high in-hospital mortality rate of 11.8% and underutilization of pretest probability assessment.
Prioritizing pretest probability assessment may improve acute PE outcomes in resource-constrained settings; extends limited African cohort data and is hypothesis-generating for implementation trials.
Background and Aims Pulmonary embolism is a cardiovascular disease associated with significant morbidity and mortality. There is a paucity of literature regarding this condition from the Ghanaian perspective. This study aimed at evaluating the clinical profile and admission outcomes of patients with acute pulmonary embolism at the Methodist Hospital, Wenchi, Ghana. Methods A retrospective pilot study was conducted by analyzing medical records of patients diagnosed with acute pulmonary embolism from September 2023 to March 2025. Data on demographics, clinical manifestations, risk factors, investigations, treatment, and outcomes of admission were collected. Results Out of 17 patients enrolled in the study, 11 (64.7%) were females. The mean age was 58.8 ± 13.0 years. The commonest risk factors were age > 65 years (n = 6), immobilization (n = 5), obesity (n = 4), and recent surgery (n = 3). Hypertension and diabetes mellitus were the predominant comorbidities. Dyspnea (76.5%, n = 13) and chest pain (n = 5) were the most frequent presenting symptoms while tachypnea (70.6%, n = 12), tachycardia (70.6%, n = 12), and hypoxia (52.9%, n = 9) were the commonest clinical signs. Three patients had hemodynamic instability. Pretest probability assessment was infrequently performed (n = 7). Sinus tachycardia (76.5%, n = 13) was the predominant electrocardiographic abnormality. The majority (58.8%, n = 10) had intermediate‐risk pulmonary embolism whereas 3 patients were classified as having high‐risk pulmonary embolism. Two in‐hospital mortalities were recorded. Conclusion Clinical features and predisposing factors were largely similar to those described in the literature. Also, pretest probability assessment was underutilized. In‐hospital mortality rate (11.8%) was relatively high. Large‐scale, multicenter prospective studies are recommended to assess long‐term complications of acute pulmonary embolism such as recurrence and chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension.
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Adjei et al. (2026) studied this question. In-hospital mortality for acute pulmonary embolism at a Ghana hospital was 11.8%, with dyspnea in 76.5% and underutilized pretest probability assessment.
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