Fatal pulmonary embolus after shoulder arthroplasty.

Pulmonary embolus after upper-extremity surgery is a rare complication of upper extremity surgery. A case of a fatal pulmonary embolus after shoulder arthroplasty is reported. The embolus originated from a lower-extremity deep venous thrombosis. The cause of the deep venous thrombosis and subsequent pulmonary embolus was attributed to prolonged immobilization in the perioperative period.