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The current dilemma with sepsis diagnosis
„Sepsis is defined as life-threatening
organ dysfunction
caused by a
dysregulated host response
to
infection.“
Infection
Diagnosis of infection:
• Too slow
Detects bacteria after
24h-48h (blood culture)
→ Useless for initial treatment decision
• Not reliable:
30-60% of septic patients do not have bacteria in the blood
→ Limited utility to diagnose a sepsis
Immune
response
Diagnosis of Immune response:
• Too unspecific
Similar symptoms in other diseases (heart failure, trauma)
• To unspecific, too slow:
Current markers are upregulated in sterile inflammation without infection
Time to result: at least 6h
→ Limited utility to diagnose a sepsis
Organ
dysfunction
Diagnosis of organ dysfunction:
• Too unspecific
Detects the condition of a patient that can have different reasons
→ Limited utility to diagnose a sepsis
→ prognosis rather than diagnosis
causes
causes
Sepsis -
each minute counts
Accelerated diagnosis would save lives and billions for healthcare systems
1h
delay in
diagnosis
+ 8% of sepsis patients
develop septic shock
+ 2-7,5% increased lethality
Delay in diagnosis causes:
- Prolonged hospital stay and time in
intensive care unit (estimated 4 days)
- Prolonged therapy
Standard Recommendation:
1-hour sepsis bundle
Treatment within 1 hour after recognition of first signs of sepsis:
• Broad spectrum antibiotics
• Cristalloid fluid infusion therapy
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