Sepsis symptoms in children: Five warning signs all parents should know
Knowing the symptoms of sepsis can save your child’s life.
Each year, 2,000 children in the UK and 75,000 in the US develop the life-threatening reaction to an infection.
If caught early, it is completely treatable with antibiotics. But without emergency care, organ failure can set in quickly. Some patients will die.
It happens when the immune system overreacts to an infection and starts attacking the body’s own tissues and organs.
Actor Jason Watkins and his wife Clara Francis are now speaking out about the ‘silent killer’, who took the life of his two-and-a-half-year-old daughter Maude in 2011.
In an ITV1 documentary, Jason & Clara: In Memory of Maudie, the couple reveal that her death from sepsis could have been prevented.
Here, MailOnline highlights the warning signs of sepsis in children to catch the disease early.
Sepsis is life-threatening, but if caught early, it’s treatable. Children with sepsis may have difficulty breathing, seizures, be lethargic, have a rash that won’t go away when you put a glass on it, and babies may have trouble feeding
Change in skin
Sepsis can cause the skin to change its appearance.
This can cause the skin to look mottled — when a web-like rash appears — bluish, pale, or develop a rash that doesn’t fade, according to The UK Sepsis Trust.
A child’s skin may also feel abnormally cold.
This is due to toxins — produced by the bacteria that cause the infection — damaging the small blood vessels and causing them to leak fluid into surrounding tissues, according to the NHS.
This has a knock-on effect on the heart’s ability to pump blood, lowering blood pressure and the body’s surface temperature.
Jason Watkins and Clara Francis have worked on Jason & Clara: In Memory of Maudie, in which the couple will offer support to other families suffering from grief following the death of their two-year-old daughter in 2011
Ahead of the documentary’s release, the couple spoke to Giovanna Fletcher on her Happy Mum, Happy Baby podcast about the devastating loss of their child Maude, pictured above
Breathe fast
If a child is breathing very fast, the NHS says to call 999.
It could be a sign of sepsis, as the infection can cause blood pressure to drop.
As a result, vital organs, such as the brain and liver, do not receive the blood and oxygen they need.
This can cause rapid breathing.
For children under five who can talk, you may notice that they struggle to say more than a few words before they get out of breath.
Children may also make grunting noises and suck their stomachs in with each breath.
Convulsion
A child may have a seizure or convulsions if they are suffering from sepsis.
This reaction may be caused by the brain not getting the vital blood it needs.
A febrile seizure is caused by a fever and causes a child’s body to become stiff and the legs and arms to shake.
During the attack, a child loses consciousness and may urinate in the mouth, vomit, or foam at the mouth.
It usually takes less than five minutes.
While it’s not always a sign of something serious, the NHS advises going to the nearest hospital as a precaution.
Difficult to wake up
Children with sepsis can become very lethargic or have difficulty waking up, warns the UK Sepsis Trust.
Like a cold or the flu, sepsis can also make people tired and lethargic.
But if a child has increasing difficulty waking up, it could be a sign of sepsis.
This is because the brain and other vital organs are not getting the blood and oxygen they need due to the body’s extreme response to infection.
If the body continues to lack blood and oxygen, it can lead to multiple organ failure and death.
Stopped feeding
Babies and children under the age of five can show different signs of sepsis.
In addition to a rash or rapid breathing, children under the age of five may also have difficulty eating and drinking.
If a baby isn’t drinking, it could be a sign they are in pain, discomfort or an illness, which could be sepsis, warns the UK Sepsis Trust.
Other signs to look out for include a child who is vomiting repeatedly and not urinating for 12 hours or more.
What are the main symptoms of sepsis? The ‘silent killer’ that can cause death in minutes
Sepsis, known as the “silent killer,” strikes when an infection such as septicemia triggers a violent immune response in which the body attacks its own organs.
It is a potentially life-threatening condition, caused by infection or injury. Each year, about 245,000 people in the UK develop sepsis and 52,000 die, according to the UK Sepsis Trust.
Instead of attacking the invading bug, the body turns on itself and shuts down vital organs.
If caught early enough, it is easily treated with intravenous antibiotics and fluids, but these should be given as soon as sepsis is suspected – it strikes with frightening speed and for every hour of delay, a patient’s chance of death increases by 8 per cent.
Sepsis is a leading cause of preventable death, killing 44,000 people each year
The early symptoms of sepsis can be easily confused with milder conditions, meaning it can be difficult to diagnose.
A high temperature (fever), chills and chills, a rapid heartbeat and rapid breathing are also indicators.
A patient can deteriorate quickly if sepsis is missed at an early stage, so prompt diagnosis and treatment is vital – but this rarely happens.
In the early stages, sepsis can be mistaken for a respiratory infection, the flu, or an upset stomach.
It is most common and dangerous in older adults, pregnant women, children under one year of age, people with chronic conditions, or people with weakened immune systems.
The six signs of something potentially deadly can be identified by the acronym ‘SEPSIS’:
- Slurred speech or confusion
- Extreme chills or muscle aches
- Don’t pee for a day
- Severe shortness of breath
- Skin that is mottled or discolored
Anyone who develops any of these symptoms should seek urgent medical attention — and ask doctors, “Could this be sepsis?”