Diagnostic laparotomy for fever or abdominal pain of unknown origin.

Diagnostic laparotomy performed on twenty-four patients with FUO and twenty-seven patients with obscure abdominal pain resulted in a positive yield of 87 and 82 per cent, respectively. No deaths occurred in either group and the complication rate was minimal. These findings indicate that it is appropriate to include laparotomy in the armamentarium for diagnosis of the cause of FUO and abdominal pain.