Watching Television and Risk of Mortality From Pulmonary Embolism Among Japanese Men and Women

Although case series reporting pulmonary embolism or deep vein thrombosis after prolonged television watching have been published,1 no prospective study has examined the association between time spent watching television and the risk of mortality from pulmonary embolism. We examined this association in a large cohort study of Japanese men and women.The Japanese Collaborative Cohort Study is a population-based cohort study that started between 1988 and 1990 in 45 regions of Japan involving 110 585 participants 40 to 79 years of age.2 Written or verbal informed consent was obtained according to the guidelines of the Council of International Organizations of Medical Science.3 This study was approved by the ethics committees of the Nagoya University and Osaka University. After the exclusion of those who did not provide information about time spent watching television and those who reported a history of cancer, stroke, myocardial infarction, or pulmonary embolism, 86 024 participants (36 006 men and 50 018 women) were included in the analysis. Baseline information was collected by a self-administered questionnaire that included items about demographic characteristics, medical history, and lifestyle factors. Participants were asked for their …