Free-radical activity was studied in patients on maintenance haemodialysis by measuring plasma octadeca-9, 11-dienoic acid (9,11-LA'), a diene-conjugated derivative of linoleic acid. Baseline values of 9,11-LA' (esterified as phospholipids and as free fatty acids) in 51 haemodialysis patients were similar to that of normal control subjects. However, during haemodialysis there was a highly significant (P less than 0.001) increase in 9,11-LA' in all 13 patients studied, which reached a peak 30 min after haemodialysis was started and then declined. The rise in plasma 9,11-LA' may be due to free radicals generated by activated neutrophils. Abnormal free-radical activity may be partly responsible for some haemodialysis-related complications, including pulmonary dysfunction in early haemodialysis.