This position paper provides a comprehensive guide for optimal follow-up of patients with acute pulmonary embolism (PE), covering multiple relevant aspects of patient counselling. It serves as a practical guide to treating patients with acute PE complementary to the formal 2019 European Society of Cardiology guidelines developed with the European Respiratory Society. We propose a holistic approach considering the whole spectrum of serious adverse events that patients with acute PE may encounter on the short and long run. We underline the relevance of assessment of modifiable risk factors for bleeding, of acquired thrombophilia and limited cancer screening (unprovoked PE) as well as a dedicated surveillance for the potential development of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension as part of routine practice; routine testing for genetic thrombophilia should be avoided. We advocate the use of outcome measures for functional outcome and quality of life to quantify the impact of the PE diagnosis and identify patients with the post-PE syndrome early. Counselling patients on maintaining a healthy lifestyle mitigates the risk of the post-PE syndrome and improves cardiovascular prognosis. Therefore, we consider it important to discuss when and how to resume sporting activities soon after diagnosing PE. Additional patient-relevant topics that require Focused counselling are travel and birth control.

The current treatment algorithm for chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) as depicted in the 2022 European Society of Cardiology (ESC)/European Respiratory Society (ERS) guidelines on the diagnosis and treatment of pulmonary hypertension (PH) includes a multimodal approach of combinations of pulmonary endarterectomy (PEA), balloon pulmonary angioplasty (BPA) and medical therapies to target major vessel pulmonary vascular lesions, and microvasculopathy. Today, BPA of >1700 patients has been reported in the literature from centers in Asia, the US, and also Europe; many more patients have been treated outside literature reports. As BPA becomes part of routine care of patients with CTEPH, benchmarks for safe and effective care delivery become increasingly important. In light of this development, the ESC Working Group on Pulmonary Circulation and Right Ventricular Function has decided to publish a document that helps standardize BPA to meet the need of uniformity in patient selection, procedural planning, technical approach, materials and devices, treatment goals, complications including their management, and patient follow-up, thus complementing the guidelines. Delphi methodology was utilized for statements that were not evidence based. First, an anatomical nomenclature and a description of vascular lesions are provided. Second, treatment goals and definitions of complete BPA are outlined. Third, definitions of complications are presented which may be the basis for a standardized reporting in studies involving BPA. The document is intended to serve as a companion to the official ESC/ERS guidelines.

Our aim was the assessment of the prognostic significance of right heart thrombi (RiHT) and their characteristics in pulmonary embolism in relation to established prognostic factors.138 patients (69 females) aged (mean±sd) 62±19 years with RiHT were included into a multicenter registry. A control group of 276 patients without RiHT was created by propensity scoring from a cohort of 963 contemporary patients. The primary end-point was 30-day pulmonary embolism-related mortality; the secondary end-point included 30-day all-cause mortality. In RiHT patients, pulmonary embolism mortality was higher in 31 patients with systolic blood pressure <90 mmHg than in 107 normotensives (42%versus12%, p=0.0002) and was higher in the 83 normotensives with right ventricular dysfunction (RVD) than in the 24 normotensives without RVD (16%versus0%, p=0.038). In multivariable analysis the simplified Pulmonary Embolism Severity Index predicted mortality (hazard ratio 2.43, 95% CI 1.58–3.73; p<0.0001), while RiHT characteristics did not. Patients with RiHT had higher pulmonary embolism mortality than controls (19%versus8%, p=0.003), especially normotensive patients with RVD (16%versus7%, p=0.02).30-day mortality in patients with RiHT is related to haemodynamic consequences of pulmonary embolism and not to RiHT characteristics. However, patients with RiHT and pulmonary embolism resulting in RVD seem to have worse prognosis than propensity score-matched controls.

Over the past few years, artificial intelligence (AI) has significantly improved healthcare. Once the stuff of science fiction, AI is now widely used, even in our daily lives — often without us thinking about it. All healthcare professionals — especially executives and medical doctors — need to understand the capabilities of advanced AI tools and other breakthrough innovations. This understanding will allow them to recognize opportunities and threats emerging technologies can bring to their organizations. We hope to contribute to a meaningful public discussion about the role of this new type of AI and how our approach to healthcare and medicine can best evolve with the rapid development of this technology. Since medicine learns by example, only a few possible uses of AI in medicine are provided, which merely outline the system’s capabilities. Among the examples, it is worth highlighting the roles of AI in medical notes, education, preventive programs, consultation, triage and intervention. It is believed by the authors that large language models such as chat generative pre-trained transformer (ChatGPT) are reaching a level of maturity that will soon impact clinical medicine as a whole and improve the delivery of individualized, compassionate, and scalable healthcare. It is unlikely that AI will replace physicians in the near future. The human aspects of care, including empathy, compassion, critical thinking, and complex decision-making, are invaluable in providing holistic patient care beyond diagnosis and treatment decisions. The GPT-4 has many limitations and cannot replace direct contact between an experienced physician and a patient for even the most seemingly simple consultations, not to mention the ethical and legal aspects of responsibility for diagnosis. Over the past few years, artificial intelligence (AI) has significantly improved healthcare. Once the stuff of science fiction, AI is now widely used, even in our daily lives — often without us thinking about it. All healthcare professionals — especially executives and medical doctors — need to understand the capabilities of advanced AI tools and other breakthrough innovations. This understanding will allow them to recognize opportunities and threats emerging technologies can bring to their organizations. We hope to contribute to a meaningful public discussion about the role of this new type of AI and how our approach to healthcare and medicine can best evolve with the rapid development of this technology. Since medicine learns by example, only a few possible uses of AI in medicine are provided, which merely outline the system’s capabilities. Among the examples, it is worth highlighting the roles of AI in medical notes, education, preventive programs, consultation, triage and intervention. It is believed by the authors that large language models such as chat generative pre-trained transformer (ChatGPT) are reaching a level of maturity that will soon impact clinical medicine as a whole and improve the delivery of individualized, compassionate, and scalable healthcare. It is unlikely that AI will replace physicians in the near future. The human aspects of care, including empathy, compassion, critical thinking, and complex decision-making, are invaluable in providing holistic patient care beyond diagnosis and treatment decisions. The GPT-4 has many limitations and cannot replace direct contact between an experienced physician and a patient for even the most seemingly simple consultations, not to mention the ethical and legal aspects of responsibility for diagnosis.