• Somayeh Sadeghi, Zahra Arabi, Maryam Moradi, and Elham Raofi.
• Aquired Immunodeficiency Research Center, School of Medicine, Al-Zahra Hospital, Isfahan University of Medicine Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
• J Res Med Sci. 2021 Jan 1; 26: 37.

BackgroundPulmonary embolism (PE) is one of the major causes of maternal mortality; however, its diagnosis based on clinical presentation is a significant challenge; therefore, imaging is required. This study aims to determine the nondiagnostic rate of PE in pregnant women who initially undergone computed tomographic pulmonary angiography (CTPA) or perfusion scan.Materials And MethodsIn this cross-sectional study, all pregnant or 6-week postpartum women with clinical suspicion of PE were evaluated and underwent CTPA or perfusion scan between March 2017 and June 2019. The nondiagnostic rate of each method was defined as the outcome of this study.ResultsOne hundred and eighty-two women with a clinical suspicion of PE were included, among which the initial imaging method was CTPA in 122 (67.03%) and perfusion scan in 60 (32.97%) women. The nondiagnostic imaging for CTPA was significantly lower than the perfusion scan (9 cases (7.4%) versus 25 cases (41.7%), respectively). Logistic regression assessment revealed a statistical outcome by controlling the confounders including gestational trimester at diagnosis, hypertension, ejection fraction, and tachycardia (odds ratio 15.911, 95% confidence interval: 5.177-48.897, P < 0.001).ConclusionBased on the current study, CTPA is superior to perfusion scans to diagnose PE among pregnant or postpartum women with normal chest X-ray suspicion for PE.Copyright: © 2021 Journal of Research in Medical Sciences.

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