• transthoracic echocardiography
• pulmonary embolism
• cardiac arrest

I read with interest the case report by MacCarthy et al¹ describing the use of transthoracic echocardiography during cardiac arrest due to massive pulmonary embolism (PE). Such cases raise the question of whether thrombolysis could be used routinely during all non-traumatic cardiac arrests, not just those known to be caused by PE.

Up to 70% of cardiac arrests have thrombosis …