Pulmonary thromboembolism (PTE) is a fairly common yet frequently unrecognized disease. The inability to readily establish a definitive antemortem diagnosis combined with a low degree of clinical suspicion combine to make identification of patients difficult. Additionally necropsy identification requires careful evaluation of very fresh tissues. It is important for clinicians to maintain a high degree of suspicion when presented with animals displaying signs of or tachypnea or dyspnea and those animals suffering from disease states known to predispose to PTE. PTE is the result of obstruction of the pulmonary arteries and arterioles. Most emboli are pieces of thrombi which have formed in the vessels of the lungs themselves or somewhere else in the body. These thrombi typically develop secondary to blood stasis, endothelial injury or both. Emboli can also be composed of bacteria, foreign bodies (catheters), air, fat, hair or parasites.
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