What is a pulmonary embolism?

Pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis sound like two names for one problem, and readers near Tinley Park tend to meet them together. This page defines the lung term first and then marks where the leg term sits beside it.

The definition, with its source

medlineplus.gov gives the definition: A pulmonary embolism (PE) is a sudden blockage in a lung artery. It usually happens when a blood clot breaks loose and travels through the bloodstream to the lungs.

Telling it apart from the leg term

Deep vein thrombosis has its own entry, and the Cleveland Clinic overview of deep vein thrombosis is the place to check how that publisher words it. Reading the two definitions in turn shows that they are separate entries from separate sources.

Further reading from other publishers

Cleveland Clinic's venous disease guide covers the vein side of the subject. For the treatment angle, the NHLBI page on venous thromboembolism treatment is an NIH source worth holding next to the others.

What to ask after this

The definition leaves one question open for most readers: how a doctor finds out whether a pulmonary embolism is present.