Question

A 36-year-old man presents with pleuritic chest pain and shortness of breath 3 days after knee arthroscopy. His Wells score for pulmonary embolism is high. He is haemodynamically stable. What is the single most appropriate initial investigation to confirm the diagnosis?

Accepted Answer

CT pulmonary angiography

Answer

D-dimer assay

Answer

Ventilation–perfusion scan

Answer

Transthoracic echocardiogram

Answer

Lower limb venous ultrasound

Practice question

A 36-year-old man presents with pleuritic chest pain and shortness of breath 3 days after knee arthroscopy. His Wells score for pulmonary embolism is high. He is haemodynamically stable. What is the single most appropriate initial investigation to confirm the diagnosis?