The risk of bacterial sepsis directly related to splenectomy performed at any age and for any reason has been clearly defined in the recent literature, yet some physicians remain either unaware or unconvinced of this fact. Even if the sepsis is diagnosed promptly and is appropriately treated, 50% to 75% of patients who develop this illness die. There are approximately 50,000 people in the United States who are functionally asplenic because they have sickle-cell disease. In addition, according to the 1977 Hospital Discharge Survey of the National Center for Health Statistics (unpublished data), about 35,000 individuals undergo splenectomy each year for a variety of reasons, including splenic trauma, idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, hereditary spherocytosis, staging laparotomy, and renal transplantation.