Acute pulmonary embolism (PE) carries a high morbidity and is the third-leading cause of cardiovascular mortality in the western world. It accounts for 5-10% of in-hospital deaths that for the United States translates to 200,000 deaths per year.1 Recent registries and cohort studies suggest that approximately 10% of all patients with acute PE die during the first 1 to 3 months after diagnosis. Studies that have observed survivors for >3 months have reported an incidence of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) 1-5% within 2-3 years after PE.6-10 It is an incapacitating long-term complication of thromboembolic disease with a negative impact on the patient's quality of life and prognosis.