MADRID, 21 (EUROPA PRESS)
Sepsis can kill even previously healthy people (without associated diseases) if it is detected too late, according to a study from the University of Michigan (USA).
Specifically, 10 percent of the hospitalized sepsis patients studied in this study were previously healthy, and many of those who ultimately died did so because it was too late to intervene.
The study used data from 66 Michigan hospitals on more than 25,000 sepsis patients between 2020 and 2024 and identified a subset as previously healthy, without major health problems such as cancer, chronic lung disease, and heart failure. Previously healthy patients tended to have lower levels of organ failure upon arrival at the hospital and more COVID-19-related sepsis.
Treatment for these patients also differed, with lower adherence to sepsis management practices, such as blood culture collection and timely antibiotic administration.
Those who died tended to be older and had more acute respiratory dysfunction, altered mental status, and shock upon hospital admission. Furthermore, the researchers note that during treatment, these patients also received vasopressors and invasive mechanical ventilation more frequently than survivors.
They also point out that most of their deaths were considered "inevitable" due to how sick they were when they arrived at the hospital. Overall, nearly 10 percent of previously healthy patients with sepsis died within 90 days of hospitalization.
"Some of these tragic deaths among previously healthy people could have been avoided if their illness had been prevented through vaccination or if it had been detected and treated early, before they became sick enough to reach the hospital," says researcher and study leader Rachel Hechtman. She concludes that efforts to raise awareness about sepsis among the public and first responders would be beneficial for everyone.
