The surgical treatment of cerebral abscesses has changed over recent years and consists, in most cases, of aspiration based on the data supplied by computerized tomography. The purpose of aspiration is threefold: to avoid a major surgical operation, to empty the abscess and thereby reduce its size, and to identify the responsible germ(s). A retrospective study of 35 cases shows that abscess of the brain remains a serious disease that jeopardizes the patient's vital and functional prognosis. Despite improvements in sample collection and isolation techniques, no microorganism is found in 30% of the cases. Therapeutic success therefore is dependent upon the effectiveness of emergency chemotherapy using combinations of two or three antibiotics. Monitoring with computerized tomography avoids unnecessarily prolonged treatments.