Lung Abscess

Abscess of the lung is aptly defined by Maxwell (1934) as 'non-tuberculous suppuration with cavitation occurring in the lung tissue \ Nowadays, it is generally agreed that abscess and gangrene of the lung clinically are different stages of the same pathological process which is likely to appear under certain conditions. The stage of the suppurative process will depend upon the virulence of the infection and resistance offered by the patient. Thus, when the infection is highly virulent and the patient is debilitated, he is likely to develop gangrene; while if the infection is mild and the resistance of the patient good, he will probably have the comparatively localized intra-pulmonary suppuration called the abscess of the lung. The purpose of this paper is to report the findings of the study of 53 consecutive caserecords of lung abscess that were admitted in Sir J. J. Hospital, Bombay, during the last six years, from 1936 onwards. The condition is known from ancient times, but it seems that with increased facilities at