Pulmonary Embolism and Unexpected Death in Supposedly Normal Persons

SEVERAL authors have called attention to the occurrence of phlebothrombosis and pulmonary embolism in apparently healthy people.1 2 3 4 5 6 How frequently death occurs unexpectedly from pulmonary embolism arising from phlebothrombosis in normal persons is unknown. To estimate the minimal incidence of such deaths, the experience of the coroner's office of a large metropolitan county was reviewed.MethodsCases in which unexpected death was attributed to pulmonary emboli were selected from the autopsy records of the coroner's office of Cuyahoga County, Ohio. This survey, encompassing the period from January 1, 1951, through August 1, 1962, was restricted to persons of both sexes between . . .