Sepsis
hideSepsis is a serious medical condition characterized by a whole-body inflammatory state (called a systemic inflammatory response syndrome or SIRS) and the presence of a known or suspected infection. The body may develop this inflammatory response to microbes in the blood, urine, lungs, skin, or other tissues. An incorrect layman's term for sepsis is blood poisoning, more aptly applied to Septicemia, below.
Septicemia (also septicæmia [sep⋅ti⋅cæ⋅mi⋅a], or erroneously Septasemia and Septisema) is a related but deprecated (formerly sanctioned medical) term referring to the presence of pathogenic organisms in the blood-stream, leading to sepsis. The term has not been sharply defined. It has been inconsistently used in the past by medical professionals, for example as a synonym of bacteremia, causing some confusion. The present medical consensus is therefore that the term[which?] is problematic and should be avoided.
Sepsis is usually treated in the intensive care unit with intravenous fluids and antibiotics. If fluid replacement is insufficient to maintain blood pressure, specific vasopressor drugs can be used. Artificial ventilation and dialysis may be needed to support the function of the lungs and kidneys, respectively. To guide therapy, a central venous catheter and an arterial catheter may be placed. Sepsis patients require preventive measures for deep vein thrombosis, stress ulcers and pressure ulcers, unless other conditions prevent this. Some patients might benefit from tight control of blood sugar levels with insulin (targeting stress hyperglycemia), low-dose corticosteroids or activated drotrecogin alfa (recombinant protein C).
For more information about Sepsis, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with sepsis
Scientists link fat hormone to death from potentially deadly blood infection
Oct 23, 2009 |
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A new Canadian study has found that lower-than-normal levels of a naturally-occurring fat hormone may increase the risk of death from sepsis—an overwhelming infection of the blood which claims thousands of lives each year.
Milk protein supplement may help prevent sepsis in very low birth-weight infants
Oct 06, 2009 |
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Very low birth-weight newborns who received the milk protein lactoferrin alone or in combination with a probiotic had a reduced incidence of late-onset sepsis, according to a study in the October 7 issue of JAMA.
Surviving sepsis program -- increased compliance gets results
Sep 03, 2009 |
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A 'surviving sepsis' in-hospital project has been shown to improve the care of patients with sepsis. The educational program for early management of patients with septic shock, described in BioMed Central's open access journal ...
Scientists uncork a potential secret of red wine's health benefits
Jul 30, 2009 |
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Scientists from Scotland and Singapore have unraveled a mystery that has perplexed scientists since red wine was first discovered to have health benefits: how does resveratrol control inflammation? New research published ...
Therapy helps improve outcomes for patients with severe sepsis
Jun 17, 2009 |
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A preliminary study suggests that a therapy for severe sepsis or septic shock that included the use of an antibiotic-based "hemoperfusion" device to remove toxic products of bacteria from the blood in addition to conventional ...
Researchers pioneer an advanced sepsis detection and management system
Jun 16, 2009 |
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When Jason Martin gives a talk about his research, he begins with the dramatic story of Mariana Bridi da Costa: The young Brazilian supermodel died from severe sepsis in January after amputation of both her hands and feet ...
Novel discovery in dendritic cell signalling pathways pave the way for new therapeutic targets
Jun 15, 2009 |
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Scientists from A*STAR's Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN) and the University of Milano-Bicocca, Italy, have discovered another signaling pathway for the activation and apoptosis, or programmed cell death, of dendritic ...
Key protein regulating inflammation may prove relevant to controlling sepsis
May 14, 2009 |
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Scientists at Singapore's Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), under the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), have identified the protein, WIP1, as the molecular "brake" that curbs severe inflammation ...
Double hand transplant patient recovering well
May 08, 2009 |
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(AP) -- Valarie Kepner was so excited at learning last fall that doctors might be able give her husband new hands that she called the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center without telling him first.
Older men more likely than women to die after pneumonia
Apr 29, 2009 |
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Differing biological response to infection between men and women may explain higher death rates among older men who are hospitalized with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). The findings, published online in the Critical Ca ...
Research could lead to new non-antibiotic drugs to counter hospital infections
Apr 09, 2009 |
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Lack of an adequate amount of the mineral phosphate can turn a common bacterium into a killer, according to research to be published in the April 14, 2009, issue of the Proceedings of the National Academies of ...
Premature newborns lack 'death NET' to fight sepsis
Mar 20, 2009 |
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When locked in mortal combat with infection, some mature white blood cells have a formidable weapon: they literally cast a DNA net—called a neutrophil extracellular trap (NET)—that captures and kills bacteria that invade ...
New research links platelets to sepsis-related organ failure
Mar 10, 2009 |
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Scientists at Children's National Medical Center have identified a previously unknown contributor to organ failure in patients suffering from sepsis: platelets.
Researchers probe mechanisms of infection
Mar 09, 2009 |
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A newly discovered receptor in a strain of Escherichia coli might help explain why people often get sicker when they're stressed.
Probing Question: How does antibiotic resistance happen?
Mar 05, 2009 |
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Before Alexander Fleming's discovery of penicillin in 1928, there were any number of unpleasant ways that bacteria could kill you. Countless women died from infection after childbirth, and a simple chest cold could turn into ...
