Sepsis
Sepsis is an inflammatory immune response triggered by an infection. Bacterial infections are the most common cause, but fungal, viral, and protozoan infections can also lead to sepsis. Risk factors include being very young, older age, a weakened immune system from conditions such as cancer or diabetes, major trauma, or burns. Sepsis requires immediate treatment with intravenous fluids and antimicrobials.
About Sepsis in brief
Sepsis is an inflammatory immune response triggered by an infection. Bacterial infections are the most common cause, but fungal, viral, and protozoan infections can also lead to sepsis. Common locations for the primary infection include the lungs, brain, urinary tract, skin, and abdominal organs. Risk factors include being very young, older age, a weakened immune system from conditions such as cancer or diabetes, major trauma, or burns. Sepsis requires immediate treatment with intravenous fluids and antimicrobials. Ongoing care often continues in an intensive care unit. If an adequate trial of fluid replacement is not enough to maintain blood pressure, then the use of medications that raise blood pressure becomes necessary. Mechanical ventilation and dialysis may be needed to support the function of the lungs and kidneys. Some people might benefit from tight control of blood sugar levels with insulin. The use of corticosteroids is controversial, with some reviews finding benefit, and others not. Septicemia and blood poisoning are no longer recommended. The terms \”septicemia\” and \”blood poisoning\” have been used in various ways and are no now recommended. Sepsis affected about 49 million people in 2017, with 11 million deaths. In the developed world, approximately 0.2 to 3 people per 1000 are affected bysepsis yearly, resulting in about a million cases per year in the U.S. Sepsis is more common among males than females. Early signs include a rapid heart rate, decreased urination, and high blood sugar.
Signs of established seps is include confusion, metabolic acidosis, low blood pressure due to vascular resistance, and disorders in blood-clotting. Fever may be absent in some people, but fever may be part of the cause in others. The most common stromocompromised condition is septic shock. After the introduction of antibiotics in the 1960s, gram-negative bacteria became the predominant cause. Gram-positive bacteria were the primary cause before the 1950s. After 1980s, most commonly stromococcal or viral infections were the most commonly cause of seps Isis. The risk of death from sepsIs is as high as 30%, while for severe sepsi it is ashigh as 50%, and septic Shock 80%. Sepsis can cause lightheadedness and can cause a drop in blood pressure in people who are immunised to stomococcal infections. The very young and old may have no symptoms of a specific infection, and the body temperature may be low or normal instead of having a fever. Medical imaging is helpful when looking for the possible location of the infection. Other potential causes of similar signs and symptoms include anaphylaxis, adrenal insufficiency, low blood volume, heart failure, and pulmonary embolism. Other helpful measurements include cardiac output and superior vena cava oxygen saturation. The diagnosis does not require the blood to be infected; however, the diagnosis doesn’t require theBlood cultures before starting antibiotics.
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This page is based on the article Sepsis published in Wikipedia (as of Jan. 10, 2021) and was automatically summarized using artificial intelligence.