Pulmonary vascular disease & thromboembolism

Incidence, risk factors, and mortality of pulmonary embolism in the Netherlands (2015–22): sex differences and shifts during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic

Eur Heart JPublished Nationwide cohort study

Authors' conclusion

The seemingly favourable pre-pandemic temporal trends in PE epidemiology in the Netherlands reversed during the COVID-19 pandemic but appear to revert to pre-pandemic levels after 2022.

Study context

Population
Dutch inhabitants without a history of pulmonary embolism (PE), Statistics Netherlands, 2015–22
Participants
>16 million inhabitants8 annual cohorts
Exposure
PE incidence and mortality in 2020–22 vs 2019
Outcome
1-year risk of PE (hospital diagnoses/primary cause of death); 1-year all-cause mortality following PE
Follow-up
1 year
Methodological detailsdynamic annual cohorts 2015–22, nationwide registry data
  • Dynamic annual cohorts 2015–22
  • Nationwide registry data

Main finding

As reported in the abstract

PE incidence
Increase (95% CI)
2020vs 2019
23%(20%–26%)
2021vs 2019
52%(48%–56%)
2022vs 2019
7%(4%–9%)

Observational data: associations, not effects.

Further findings

1-year all-cause mortality after PE

Increase (CI)
202010% (6%–14%)
20219% (6%–13%)
2022Insignificant2% (−1% to 6%)
PE mortality stable until 2019

Traditional PE risk factors

Most remained associated with PE in 2020–22 but generally with a weaker association

Sex differences

Changes since 2020 generally greater in males than females

Parts of this Brief are withheld: the automatic checks could not confirm them against the abstract.

Original publication

Incidence, risk factors, and mortality of pulmonary embolism in the Netherlands (2015–22): sex differences and shifts during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. Eur Heart J. Published 2 April 2025. doi:10.1093/eurheartj/ehaf211

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