Factors influencing postoperative morbidity and mortality in patients treated with bleomycin.

Patients treated with bleomycin are at risk of developing the acute adult respiratory distress syndrome post-operatively. In a prospective study of 12 patients who had received bleomycin preoperatively and were undergoing removal of retroperitoneal lymph nodes or pulmonary metastases several preventive factors were established. These were the use of low concentrations of inspired oxygen during operation and in the immediate postoperative period, careful monitoring of fluid replacement, and restriction of crystalloids in favour of colloids.