Clinical and hemodynamic features of acute pulmonary embolism patients diagnosed in cold weather predicts adverse clinical outcome

Na Sun; Yiqiang Chen; Xichao Liang; Youli Fan; Ming Fang; Xuan Gao; Yongbing Wang; Yansheng Chen; Zhuozhong Wang; Bo Yu; Jinwei Tian; Bingxiang Wu

doi:10.3389/fcvm.2022.1055926

Clinical and hemodynamic features of acute pulmonary embolism patients diagnosed in cold weather predicts adverse clinical outcome

Front Cardiovasc Med. 2022 Nov 10:9:1055926. doi: 10.3389/fcvm.2022.1055926. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Na Sun^{1

2}, Yiqiang Chen³, Xichao Liang¹, Youli Fan^{1

2}, Ming Fang^{1

2}, Xuan Gao^{1

2}, Yongbing Wang¹, Yansheng Chen^{1

2}, Zhuozhong Wang¹, Bo Yu^{1

2}, Jinwei Tian^{1

2}, Bingxiang Wu^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Cardiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.
² Key Laboratory of Myocardial Ischemia, Ministry Education, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.
³ Department of Cardiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.

Abstract

Background: Acute pulmonary embolism (APE) is associated with peak incidence and mortality rate in winter. The present study sought to characterize the clinical and hemodynamic features of cold weather on APE patients.

Methods: All enrolled 224 APE patients underwent clinical and hemodynamic evaluation and baseline parameters were collected. Recruited patients were grouped by weather pattern on admission into cold and warm weather group. The correlation and prognostic values among cold weather and other variables were analyzed.

Results: Compared to warm weather group, patients in cold weather group present with more severe cardiac function, with adverse WHO-functional class (P = 0.032) and higher NT-proBNP concentration [1,853.0 (398.0, 5,237.0) pg/ml vs. 847.5 (56.8, 3,090.5) pg/ml, P = 0.001]. The cold weather group also displayed much critical hemodynamic status and heavier thrombosis load, with higher mPAP (29.1 ± 11.2mmHg vs. 25.6 ± 14.2mmHg, P = 0.045), higher PVR [3.3 (1.7, 6.0) wood units vs. 1.8 (0.9, 3.8) wood units, P < 0.001], higher Miller index (21.4 ± 5.9 vs. 19.1 ± 8.0, P = 0.024), and higher D-dimer levels [2,172.0 (854.5, 3,072.5) mg/L vs. 1,094.5 (210.5, 2,914.5) mg/L, P = 0.008]. Besides, cold weather showed well correlation with the above variables. Survival analysis showed APE patients in cold weather had significantly higher clinical worsening event rate (P = 0.010) and could be an independent predictor of adverse clinical outcome in the multivariate analysis (HR 2.629; 95% CI 1.127, 6.135; P = 0.025).

Conclusion: APE patients in cold weather were associated with thrombus overload, cardiac dysfunction, hemodynamic collapse and higher clinical worsening event rate. Cold weather proves to be an independent predictor of adverse clinical outcome.

Keywords: acute pulmonary embolism; clinical; cold weather; hemodynamic; outcome.