Rehman Abdul, Chishti Syeda Zoya, Bibi Fazeelah
Emergency Medicine Department, Pakistan Air Force Hospital, Islamabad, PAK.
Obstetrics and Gynecology Department, Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences Hospital, Islamabad, PAK.
Cureus. 2025 Jul 22;17(7):e88520. doi: 10.7759/cureus.88520. eCollection 2025 Jul.
Pulmonary embolism (PE), a potentially life-threatening condition, results from obstruction of the pulmonary arteries by thromboemboli. It typically presents with cough, dyspnea, pleuritic-type chest pain, hemoptysis, or hemodynamic instability. However, in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) or elderly patients, it may present with recurrent falls. Falls as a primary presenting symptom of PE are rare and underrecognized but should be considered in patients with PD, especially if the falls are new-onset, unexplained, or associated with signs of hemodynamic compromise. We report a case of an elderly patient with PD whose recent unexplained falls led to the diagnosis of PE, emphasizing the need for heightened clinical suspicion in this patient population, especially when presenting with unexplained falls in the emergency department. Missed diagnosis of PE can potentially lead to serious long-term morbidity and mortality.
肺栓塞（PE）是一种潜在的危及生命的疾病，由血栓栓子阻塞肺动脉所致。其典型症状包括咳嗽、呼吸困难、胸膜炎性胸痛、咯血或血流动力学不稳定。然而，在帕金森病（PD）患者或老年患者中，它可能表现为反复跌倒。跌倒作为PE的主要首发症状较为罕见且未得到充分认识，但在PD患者中应予以考虑，尤其是当跌倒为新发、无法解释或伴有血流动力学受损迹象时。我们报告一例患有PD的老年患者，其近期不明原因的跌倒导致了PE的诊断，强调了对此类患者群体提高临床怀疑度的必要性，尤其是在急诊科出现不明原因跌倒的情况下。PE的漏诊可能会导致严重的长期发病率和死亡率。
