On September 13th we mark World Sepsis Day. World Sepsis Day was established in 2012 by the Global Sepsis Alliance with the aim to reduce the worldwide burden of sepsis by increasing awareness of the condition.
What is Sepsis?
Sepsis is a common and potentially life-threatening condition triggered by an infection which causes the body’s immune system to go into overdrive. Sepsis can affect anyone but is more common in the very young, the elderly or those with a weakened immune system. If not treated quickly, sepsis can lead to multiple organ failures and death. Sepsis claims more lives than lung cancer and is the second biggest killer after cardiovascular disease yet awareness surrounding the condition is lacking.
Why is Sepsis Awareness so important?
Sepsis is a medical emergency. In Europe, patients with sepsis have a mortality rate ranging from 28.3 to 41.1% with 7 deaths per day in Irish hospitals being a result of sepsis. The earlier you seek treatment, the greater your chances of survival. Research shows that the chance of sepsis progressing to severe sepsis and septic shock, causing death, rises by 4-9% for every hour treatment is delayed. However, because sepsis is a condition with multiple causative organisms and has an evolving nature over time, patients can present with various signs and symptoms. For this reason, familiarising yourself with the signs and symptoms below and asking …‘Could this be Sepsis?’ could save a life.
Signs and Symptoms
- Shivering, fever or cold
- Altered mental status – slurred speech, sleepy, difficult to rouse, confused.
- Difficulty breathing/rapid breathing
- Increased heart rate
- Weak pulse/low blood pressure
- Low urine output
- Pale, discoloured or mottled skin
- Extreme body pain or discomfort
Increased awareness by healthcare workers and the general public will certainly help lower mortality rates. However, as stated by Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (WHO Director-General), if mortality rates are to be significantly impacted there is a need “to strengthen health information systems and ensure access to rapid diagnostic tools.”
How are new technologies improving sepsis diagnosis?
As we celebrate Sepsis Awareness month we would like to thank our partners Accelerate Diagnostics (AxDx) for developing technologies such as the Pheno System™ which accelerate lab results and drive better clinical outcomes for patients with serious bloodstream infections. The Pheno System™ delivers rapid identification and antimicrobial susceptibility results within 7 hours from positive blood cultures – 40 hours sooner than conventional methods!
Benefits of the Accelerate Pheno™ system
- Rapid results – I.D ∼90 mins and AST (with MIC) ∼7 h.
- Fully automated with <2 mins prep time.
- Reduces consumption of broad-spectrum antibiotics.
- Reduction in time to optimal therapy.
- Improved clinical outcomes for patients with severe bloodstream infections
The Pheno System™ has been proven to optimize workflows within the laboratory, increase clinical diagnosis yield, decrease turnaround time, and improve patient outcomes.
How can you mark World Sepsis Day 2022?
The easiest way to show your support for World Sepsis Day is to help spread awareness. The list below has some simple ideas to mark World Sepsis DAY this year:
- Raise awareness by sharing this blog and add the hashtag #WorldSepsisDay.
- Think Pink’ and organise a wear pink clothes to work day.
- Take the Sepsis Quiz to improve your knowledge around Sepsis.
- Embed the “What Is Sepsis? – sepsis explained in 3 minutes”-video on your website and/or share it on social media.
- Add ‘September 13 is World Sepsis Day – Stop Sepsis, Save Lives’ to your email signature.
References
HSE.ie. 2022. Sepsis – HSE.ie. [online] Available at: <https://www.hse.ie/eng/about/who/cspd/ncps/sepsis/> [Accessed 12 August 2022].
Sepsis Alliance. 2022. Septic Shock. [online] Available at: <https://www.sepsis.org/sepsisand/septic-shock/> [Accessed 12 August 2022].
Taylor & Francis. 2022. Rapid diagnosis of sepsis. [online] Available at: <https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.4161/viru.27393> [Accessed 12 August 2022].
Who.int. 2022. WHO calls for global action on sepsis – cause of 1 in 5 deaths worldwide. [online] Available at: <https://www.who.int/news/item/08-09-2020-who-calls-for-global-action-on-sepsis—cause-of-1-in-5-deaths-worldwide> [Accessed 12 August 2022].
World Sepsis Day – September 13. 2022. WSD 2022 — World Sepsis Day – September 13. [online] Available at: <https://www.worldsepsisday.org/wsd2022> [Accessed 12 August 2022].
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