Considerable Variation Seen in Mortality Rates for Suspected Sepsis
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
TUESDAY, May 28, 2024 -- There is considerable variation in mortality rates among patients with suspected sepsis, according to a research letter published online May 28 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
Brett Biebelberg, from Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, and colleagues conducted a retrospective analysis of all adults admitted to five Massachusetts hospitals with suspected sepsis, defined as suspected infection with concurrent organ dysfunction. A total of 74,858 patients with suspected sepsis were identified.
Overall, 31 percent of patients were admitted to intensive care and 8.9 percent died in the hospital. The researchers identified 30-fold variation in crude deaths, depending on the primary site of infection, varying from 1 to 33 percent (tick- or vector-borne infections and bacteremia, respectively). A 13-fold variation in crude deaths was seen across organ dysfunctions, ranging from 2.2 to 27 percent with a decline in systolic blood pressure of ≥40 mm Hg alone and respiratory organ failure requiring intubation with or without other organ dysfunctions, respectively. With successively more organ dysfunctions, there was an increase in mortality rates observed, but wide variation was still seen depending on which organs were involved (one, two, and three or more organ dysfunctions: 0 to 7, 3 to 10, and 5 to 21 percent mortality, respectively). When considering combinations of infection sources and organ dysfunctions, differences in mortality were further magnified.
"The wide range of disease manifestations and outcomes begs the question whether it is appropriate and helpful to group all these infections together as one syndrome with a common descriptor and common treatment plan," the authors write.
Abstract/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted May 2024
Read this next
Electronic Sepsis Screening Reduces 90-Day In-Hospital Mortality
TUESDAY, Dec. 17, 2024 -- Electronic sepsis screening among hospitalized ward patients reduces 90-day in-hospital mortality compared with no screening, according to a study...
Sepsis Care Guided by Daily Procalcitonin Cuts Antibiotic Duration
MONDAY, Dec. 16, 2024 -- Sepsis care guided by measurement of procalcitonin (PCT) reduces antibiotic duration safely compared with standard care, according to a study published...
Antibiotics for Seven Days Noninferior for Bloodstream Infection
WEDNESDAY, Nov. 27, 2024 -- Antibiotic treatment for seven days is noninferior to 14 days for hospitalized patients with bloodstream infection, according to a study published...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.