What is Sepsis? Know Facts about Sepsis

What is sepsis?

It is basically a life-threatening form of medical condition that is known to develop when the body’s ability to fight against any kind of infection leads the immune system to destroy its own healthy organs and tissues. Sepsis is known to be a common kind of health condition which if gets severe then it can lead to death as well. It is known to account for 60 to 80 percent of the deaths which have occurred across the world.

Sepsis is known to develop when the chemicals which are released by the immune system into the bloodstream to fight against infection leads to inflammation in the entire body instead of carrying out the actual work. If the sepsis is not detected on a timely manner, then it can lead to occurrence of septic shock which would turn out to be a medical emergency.

Symptoms:

There are a number of symptoms an individual suffering from sepsis would experience and those are shortage of breathing, feeling feverish, severe form of pain, the skin becomes clammy, the individual would feel shivering and also confusion. Sepsis is divided into three different stages which are, sepsis, severe sepsis and lastly sepsis shock. Sepsis is known to occur while one is still in the hospital and is trying to recover from the current procedure undergone. But this would not be the case always.

If the sepsis becomes severe then the symptoms would also aggravate and the individual would experience cases of reduction in the urination, having trouble while breathing, low count of platelet, there are changes in the mental ability of the individual, the heart functions abnormally and the individual may also feel unconscious.

Causes:

Sepsis is mostly known to be caused due to infections which get acquired in the health care environments as well as the community. Use of invasive form of medical procedures which can include catheter insertion are also known to lead to bacteria to get present in the blood. Few of the infections which can also trigger the occurrence of sepsis are pneumonia, infection in the abdomen, infection present in the kidney, and the bloodstream infection as well.

Risk Factors:

Sepsis is known to affect people of varied age groups and is not limited to any one lifestyle choice. Basically this medical condition does not cause any discrimination, it can affect anyone. Mostly new born babies, young children and the elderly are said to be at a greater risk of getting this condition. Similarly, those individuals who suffer from chronic conditions or have an impaired immune system are also at risk.

Treatment:

Sepsis is mostly known to be treated with the help of antibiotics, by carrying out a kidney dialysis or also going in for a surgery in case if the severity is high for the individual. Sepsis is known to quickly progress to the severe form of sepsis if the treatment is not carried out on a timely manner. Doctors are known to mostly use a number of techniques or medications for treating sepsis and those are, painkillers, use of insulin for stabilising blood sugar levels, antibiotics such as IV for fighting off the infection, use of corticosteroids for reducing the inflammation and the vasoactive medicines for increasing the blood pressure. Surgery would be necessary for removing the infection in severe cases and it would include draining out the pus filled abscess or removal of the infected tissues.

Prevention:

Recognising this condition early and also treating it can bring about tremendous amount of health benefits and would also save lives of the individual. It can also help in reducing the negative effects of this condition.

Is this condition life threatening: Sepsis is known to remain as a primary cause of death even after there are a lot of technological advancements in the field of science and use of various treatment options including antibiotics, vaccinations and intensive care units.

Since this condition is very much severe hence it becomes important to save lives. This can be done only by carrying out early detection as well as spreading awareness about this condition across. It is also important to understand about the vital organ support, rapid antimicrobial therapy and resuscitation.