Prediction of prognosis and outcome of patients with pulmonary embolism in the emergency department using early warning scores and qSOFA score

Objective To determine the prediction ability of the National Early Warning Score (NEWS), National Early Warning Score 2 (NEWS2), and quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) score for the prognosis of pulmonary embolism (PE) in the emergency department. Methods This retrospective study involved 245 patients with PE. The NEWS, NEWS2, and qSOFA scores were compared according to the hospitalization clinic (ward vs. intensive care unit), hospitalization length (10 days), severity of embolism (massive vs. submassive), and outcome (discharged vs. died). Results The areas under the curve of the NEWS, NEWS2, and qSOFA score for 1-week mortality were 0.854 (sensitivity, 78%; specificity, 73%; cutoff, 7.5; confidence interval, 0.807-0.902), 0.870 (sensitivity, 83%; specificity, 73%; cutoff, 5.5; confidence interval, 0.825-0.915), and 0.789 (sensitivity, 83%; specificity, 51%; cutoff, 0.5; confidence interval, 0.720-0.858), respectively. Conclusion The NEWS2 more accurately predicts 1-week mortality than do the NEWS and qSOFA score in patients with PE.