A new program will help address the growing threat of sepsis, a life-threatening infection that causes one in three U.S. hospital deaths, health officials announced Thursday.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has launched a new effort called the Hospital Sepsis Program Core Elements, aimed at preventing sepsis and deaths from sepsis by equipping hospitals with teams and resources.
Dr. Mandy Cohen, director of the CDC, said, “Sepsis takes too many lives.”
“Rapid diagnosis and prompt appropriate treatment, including antibiotics, are essential for saving lives, but the challenges in sepsis awareness and recognition are enormous.”
As part of the new effort, the CDC will provide hospital health workers with educational materials, appoint an in-hospital treatment leader and track sepsis outcomes.
In addition to saving lives and easing the strain on the U.S. health care system, preventing sepsis would also help patients avoid the long-term consequences of the condition, such as panic attacks, hallucinations, insomnia, muscle and joint pain, organ dysfunction and amputations.
Lauren Wagner (left), 26 from Canada, took to TikTok to share her near-death experience with sepsis, the body’s extreme response to infection. Sadie Kemp (right), 34, from Peterborough, England, suffered sepsis after kidney stones and had to have all her fingers removed
The symptoms of sepsis can be very similar to the flu, so watch for a very high or low temperature, sweating, extreme pain, clammy skin, dizziness, nausea, high heart rate, slurred speech, and confusion.
Sepsis is a medical emergency that health experts call a “silent killer.” It is caused by the body’s extreme response to an infection. Sepsis occurs when chemicals released into the bloodstream to fight an infection cause inflammation throughout the body. This causes a chain reaction, causing organs to fail.
Infections that lead to sepsis usually start in the lungs, urinary tract, skin, or gastrointestinal tract, but almost any infection can lead to sepsis.
According to the CDC, the complication is associated with one in three hospital deaths.
The symptoms can be very similar to the flu and include very high or low body temperature, sweating, extreme pain, clammy skin, dizziness, nausea, high heart rate, slurred speech, and confusion.
Sepsis can progress to septic shock, which is characterized by a severe drop in blood pressure. Signs of septic shock include being unable to stand up, extreme fatigue or being unable to stay awake, and a major change in mental status, according to the Mayo Clinic.
The CDC recommends seeking help immediately if you show signs of sepsis. If left untreated, sepsis and septic shock are fatal.
According to the CDC, sepsis affects 1.7 million Americans each year and kills 350,000 people each year.
Certain groups are more susceptible to sepsis, including adults age 65 and older, children under one year of age, patients with weakened immune systems, and those who have a history of sepsis. However, anyone can get it.
And if someone recovers from sepsis, they’re more likely to develop permanent health problems.
A study in the Journal of the American Heart Association Research found that people who were hospitalized for sepsis or who had it after hospitalization were 38 percent more likely to be hospitalized again for any reason. This included a 43 percent increased risk of heart problems.
Lauren Wagner, 26, from Canada, became septic as a complication of several surgeries to remove a cancerous tumor from her spine.
In a video on TikTok, she said she thought it was a bad case of the flu and initially ignored the symptoms hoping they would improve over time, but it kept getting worse.
“The main symptom I personally had that made me go to the ER was how sick I felt. I felt the most sick I’ve ever felt,” she said.
“Every day it got worse. It was very scary.’
“I really believe that sepsis is not talked about enough. It’s not taught in schools, and it’s so important that we have this information in our back pockets.”
Sophie Kemp, a 34-year-old mother from England, where there are about 245,000 sepsis cases and 48,000 deaths every year, had to have all her fingers amputated when she contracted sepsis from kidney stones.
“I realize that I have been given a second chance in life. The doctors have told me they are so confused that I am still here,” she said.
“I shouldn’t be alive, given how much poison I had in my blood.”