[The importance of Pneumocystis carinii infection in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome].

Each year we treated approximately 40 patients with adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in our department of anaesthesiology. In these cases we found with bronchoalveolar lavage followed by microbiological examination, a high incidence (40 per cent) of pneumocystis carinii contamination. An infection with Pneumocystis carinii deteriorates the clinical course of ARDS. Effective drugs were the combination of trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole. Under this therapy we always saw a decrease of infiltrations in the chest-x-ray as well as an improved gas exchange. No relapse was seen in any case.