Current data regarding gender disparities in outcomes after acute pulmonary embolism (PE) are limited and controversial. We sought to assess the gender-specific rates and trends in treatment, outcomes, and complications after acute PE. We used the 2003 to 2011 Nationwide Inpatient Sample database for this analysis. All hospital admissions with a principal diagnosis of acute PE were identified using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Edition, codes. Inhospital mortality and discharge to nursing facility were co-primary outcomes of our study. Secondary outcomes included shock, transfusion of blood products, utilization of thrombolysis, inferior vena cava filter placement, and cost of hospitalization. Over a 9-year period, a total of 276,484 discharges with acute PE were identified. Compared with men, there was significantly higher inhospital mortality in women admitted with acute PE (odds ratio [OR] 1.09, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.03 to 1.15). In addition, there was a significantly higher need for discharge to nursing facility among women compared with men (OR 1.30, 95% CI 1.27 to 1.34). Besides this, women experienced a higher need for transfusion (OR 1.38, 95% CI 1.33 to 1.44) and occurrence of shock (OR 1.10, 95% CI 1.01 to 1.18) during hospitalization. Furthermore, there was a significantly lower utilization of vena cava filters (OR 0.86, 95% CI 0.84 to 0.89) in women compared with men. Among patients in shock who were eligible for thrombolysis (age <75 years, no previous stroke, no bleeding on presentation, and not pregnant), the utilization of thrombolysis was similar between men and women (OR 1.19, 95% CI 0.93 to 1.53). Lastly, the cost of hospitalization after acute PE was significantly higher in men than women (adjusted mean difference $425, 95% CI $304 to $546). In conclusion, among patients admitted with acute PE, women tend to have more adverse outcomes and higher incidence of complications compared with men.
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