Run Time: 4 minutes

Author: Dr. Martin O’Bryan

Educational Pearls:

• PERC Score: age >50, HR <100, O₂ >95%, no history of PE or DVT, no recent trauma, no hemoptysis, no oral contraceptive, and no unilateral leg swelling.

• • If all are negative then probability of a PE is under 2%.

• A WELLS Score of <4 = low risk for PE and a negative dimer is good enough to rule out PE – there is no need for CT scan.
• WELLS score: PE #1 dx (+3), HR >100 (+1.5), surgery/immobilization in last 4 weeks (+1.5), previous DVT (+1.5), hemoptysis (+1), malignancy in last 6 months (+1), and symptoms of a DVT (+3).
• Study shows that a clinic feeling is as good as a WELLS score.

References:  http://mrmjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/2049-6958-8-75

http://www.hindawi.com/journals/amed/2015/357576/