Sepsis Plays a Role in Late Mortality

By HospiMedica International staff writers
Posted on 08 Jun 2016

A new study suggests that patients admitted to the hospital with sepsis suffered a 10% absolute increase in late death.

Researchers at the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, USA), Monash University (Melbourne, Australia), and other institutions conducted a study involving 960 patients 65 and older who were admitted to hospital with sepsis. The patients were matched to 777 adults not in hospital, 788 patients admitted with non-sepsis infection, and 504 patients admitted with acute sterile inflammatory conditions. The main outcome measures were late mortality and odds of death at various intervals.

Image: Sepsis infection caused by bacteria, which can lead to organ failure and death (Photo courtesy of the CDC).

The results showed that sepsis was associated with a 22.1% absolute increase in late mortality relative to adults not in hospital, a 10.4% absolute increase relative to patients admitted with non-sepsis infection, and a 16.2% absolute increase relative to patients admitted with sterile inflammatory conditions. Mortality remained higher for at least two years, relative to adults not in hospital. The study was published on May 17, 2016, in BMJ.

“More than one in five patients who survives sepsis dies acutely within the next two years as a consequence of sepsis. Our findings do not refute the importance of baseline burden of co-morbidity to patients' long-term outcomes after sepsis,” concluded senior author Theodore Iwashyna, MD, of Monash University, and colleagues, “they do, however, indicate that sepsis confers an additional risk of late mortality, above and beyond that predicted by status before sepsis alone.”

Sepsis is characterized by a whole-body inflammatory state caused by an immune response to a serious infection, most commonly caused by bacteria, but also by fungi, viruses, as well as parasites in the blood, urinary tract, lungs, skin, or other tissues. Common symptoms of sepsis include those related to a specific infection, but can be accompanied by high fevers, hot, flushed skin, elevated heart rate, hyperventilation, altered mental status, swelling, and low blood pressure. Sepsis causes millions of deaths globally each year.

Related Links:
University of Michigan
Monash University