The surgical treatment of pulmonary aspergillomas.

During a 4 year period 11 patients underwent 12 operations for pulmonary aspergillomas. The usual reason for operation was hemoptysis--massive or moderate. There was one death after operation and two complications. One patient since has an aspergilloma on the opposite side and has recurrent hemoptysis. There may be an increasing incidence of aspergillomas secondary to a larger number of open negative tuberculosis patients in the population. The mortality rate from operation is under 10 percent, and the complications in the saprophytic infestation are few. Surgery is the preferred treatment for the good-risk patient.