Join the 'Sepsis' group to help and get support from people like you. How it works
Sepsis Blog
| Tweet |
Severe Sepsis Can Harm the Immune System
Posted 20 Dec 2011 by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, Dec. 20 – Severe sepsis can impair the immune system, a new study says. Sepsis causes more than 225,000 deaths annually in the United States, the researchers said. "Developing new therapies for sepsis has been particularly challenging, with more than 25 unsuccessful drug trials," Jonathan S. Boomer, of the Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, and colleagues wrote as background information in the study. "Characterized by an initial intense inflammatory response or 'cytokine storm,' patients with sepsis may present with fever, shock, altered mental status, and organ dysfunction," they said. "Whether this hyperinflammatory phase is followed by immunosuppression is controversial. Animal studies suggest that multiple immune defects occur in sepsis, but data from humans remain conflicting," the researchers noted. Sepsis is a severe, systemic bacterial infection ... Read more
Related support groups: Sepsis
U.S. 'Stroke Belt' May Also Be 'Sepsis Belt'
Posted 4 Aug 2011 by Drugs.com
THURSDAY, Aug. 4 – People living in a region of the southeastern United States known as the "Stroke Belt" are known to have significantly higher rates of stroke deaths than the rest of the country. New research reveals these residents are also at greater risk for sepsis, a severe illness in which bacteria overwhelms the bloodstream. "In 2010, we examined death rates from sepsis across the United States," said Dr. Henry Wang, associate professor and vice chair for research in the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) department of emergency medicine. "Laying it out on a map, we saw that the states with highest sepsis mortality formed a cluster in the Southeast United States, closely mirroring the appearance of the Stroke Belt." The "Stroke Belt" spans 11 states from Louisiana to Virginia. Sepsis, which is typically triggered by infections such as meningitis or bacterial pneumonia, ... Read more
Related support groups: Ischemic Stroke, Sepsis, Intracranial Hemorrhage
Dramatic Drop in Blood Infections Among ICU Patients: CDC
Posted 1 Mar 2011 by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, March 1 – There has been a dramatic decline in bloodstream infections in intensive care unit patients with central lines, but the number of these infections in general remains too high, a new U.S. government report shows. From 2001 to 2009, the number of bloodstream infections in intensive care unit (ICU) patients with central lines fell by 58 percent, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday. That decrease represented up to 27,000 lives saved and $1.8 billion in excess health care costs, according to the CDC Vital Signs report. However, the report also showed that an estimated 60,000 bloodstream infections in patients with central lines occurred in non-ICU settings, including kidney dialysis clinics (about 37,000 in 2008) and hospital wards (about 23,000 in 2009). A bloodstream infection can occur when germs enter the blood through a central line, ... Read more
Related support groups: Sepsis
Hospital Spending Doesn't Affect Sepsis Survival Rates
Posted 1 Mar 2011 by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, March 1 – A new study has found that patients treated at high-cost U.S. hospitals for sepsis – a potentially life-threatening bacterial infection in the bloodstream – don't have better short-term survival rates than those treated at other hospitals. Researchers analyzed data from 309 hospitals that cared for at least 100 patients with sepsis between June 2004 and June 2006. In total, there were more than 166,900 patients, 20 percent of whom died. The median expected death rate for all hospitals was 19.2 percent. Twenty hospitals had death rates between 10 percent and 25 percent higher than the expected rate, while 46 hospitals had death rates that were more than 25 percent higher than the expected rate. The median average hospital cost was $18,256. Thirty-four percent of the hospitals exceeded expected costs by at least 10 percent, with a median excess cost per case of ... Read more
Related support groups: Sepsis
Most Americans Unfamiliar With Sepsis, Survey Finds
Posted 1 Oct 2010 by Drugs.com
THURSDAY, Sept. 30 – The majority of Americans don't know what the life-threatening immune response condition known as sepsis (or septic shock) is, according to a new survey. The survey results touch upon a serious illness that strikes a half million Americans each year and kills more than 200,000, but remains something of an enigma to the general public. "The lack of awareness and understanding is one of the major challenges we face in healthcare today," Dr. Kevin J. Tracey, president of the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, part of the North Shore-LIJ Health System in New York, said in a news release from the health system. "One in four hospital deaths are caused by sepsis, yet the majority of Americans have never even heard of the condition. Sepsis is a mystery to most Americans." The survey was conducted for the Feinstein Institute. The survey findings concern an illness ... Read more
Related support groups: Sepsis
Sepsis Treatment Offers Lifesaving Potential
Posted 16 Jun 2009 by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, June 16 – A device designed to filter bacteria-produced toxins from the blood of patients with severe sepsis or septic shock appears to improve blood circulation and organ function and lower the risk of death, a preliminary study suggests. Italian researchers tested whether using a polymyxin B fiber column – an antibiotic-based hemoperfusion device – with conventional therapy would improve patient outcomes. Polymyxin B is an antibiotic, and hemoperfusion is blood filtering to remove toxins. The study included 64 patients with severe sepsis or septic shock who had emergency surgery for intra-abdominal infection. The patients were randomly selected to receive either conventional therapy or conventional therapy plus two sessions of polymyxin B hemoperfusion. After 28 days, the death rate was 32 percent in the polymyxin B hemoperfusion group and 53 percent in the group that ... Read more
Related support groups: Sepsis
Ask a Question
Further Information
Related Condition Support Groups
Related Drug Support Groups
vancomycin, cefuroxime, Rocephin, tobramycin, Ceftin, ceftriaxone, Neupogen, cefotaxime, Vancocin, view more... Nebcin, Vancocin HCl, Xigris, Tazicef Novaplus, Tazidime, Monocid, Vancocin HCl Pulvules, Lyphocin, Nebcin Pediatric, Ceptaz, Kefurox, Tobi, Fortaz, Claforan, ceftazidime, Tazicef, Zinacef, drotrecogin alfa, cefonicid, filgrastim