Impending Paradoxical Embolism.

Impending paradoxical embolism (IPDE) is the presence of a thrombus in the patent foramen ovale. Usually, IPDE is diagnosed by echocardiography or a multislice computed tomography scan and is performed during the evaluation of a patient presenting with suspected pulmonary embolism. We report 2 patients who presented with IPDE and were successfully treated with cardiac surgery and thrombolytic therapy. Thus, we focus our discussion on the diagnosis and treatment modalities of this rare entity.