Acta Clin Belg
-
To validate the safety profile of a rapid ELISA D-dimer as the first diagnostic step in the clinical suspicion of pulmonary embolism (PE) in outpatients admitted to an emergency department (ED), and to retrospectively evaluate the appropriateness of the physician's prescription. ⋯ This observational study confirms that a normal rapid ELISA D-dimer value (< 500 ng/ml) used as a first diagnostic step in ruling out the diagnosis of PE is a safe clinical practice when the pre-test clinical probability is low or intermediate. Nevertheless, the low prevalence rate of the disease (8.1%) suggests a potential overused and inappropriate prescription.