• T Fujita and K Sakurai.
• First Department of Surgery, Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
• Am. J. Surg. 1995 Mar 1;169(3):304-7.

PurposeMany risk factors for postoperative pneumonia have been identified, but those for the progression from atelectasis to pneumonia have been poorly examined. We undertook the present study to find risk factors for the progression from atelectasis to pneumonia.Patients And MethodsWe completed a retrospective analysis of 2,969 patients who underwent major abdominal surgery during the past 13 years.ResultsPneumonia developed in 45 patients (1.5%), and postoperative atelectasis with a high risk for the subsequent infection occurred in 44 patients in whom pneumonia did not develop. A series of 13 variables was compared in the two patient categories. By multivariate discriminant analysis, we identified three independent significant correlates of the development of postoperative pneumonia: blood loss of more than 1,200 mL during surgery, age over 65 years, and preoperative utilization of inhalation therapy devices.ConclusionThis study shows that a substantial number of cases of postoperative pneumonia can be prevented.

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