Pulmonary embolism following tonsillectomy

Abstract

Acute post-operative pulmonary embolism is a serious potentially life-threatening complication which is not anticipated in young patients undergoing non-major surgery. We report a case in which a 32-year-old previously healthy woman developed a major pulmonary embolism following tonsillectomy. Subsequent investigations revealed the presence of an occult malignancy. This case highlights the role of paraneoplastic hypercoagulable states in the aetiology of venous thromboembolism and the importance of thromboprophylaxis in the presence of confirmed or suspected malignancy. To our knowledge no case of major pulmonary embolism occurring after tonsillectomy has been previously reported.