The CDC Has Labeled Sepsis as a “Medical Emergency”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued a warning about sepsis, a potentially fatal complication of infections. When caught in time, sepsis can be treated, but a delay can lead to serious injury or even death. (Both actress Patty Duke and boxer Muhammad Ali died of sepsis-related complications this year.)

The illness moves fast. The Washington Post interviewed a Maryland woman named Megan Jones, who had knee surgery in 2004. Within a week, she told the Post, “she was back in the operating room: Her knee had swollen to about triple its normal size; it throbbed intensely, and she had spiked a high fever…. Jones’s second surgery was the start of a rocky ride to rid her body of the aggressive microorganisms. She has since had numerous others to prevent or control re-emerging sepsis, to rebuild part of her leg damaged by spreading infection and finally to amputate the limb above the knee.”

The stages of sepsis

Sepsis is triggered by other infections; it is, according to the Mayo Clinic, an inflammatory response to the chemicals your body releases to fight an infection. In the first stage of sepsis, a patient will likely present with a fever of at least 101 (or even a lower body temperature than normal), accelerated heart and respiratory rates, and a lingering infection. If caught in the first stage, the patient will likely recover easily and quickly.

The second stage, severe sepsis, is more serious. Patients may suffer arrhythmias, have abdominal pain, start behaving erratically or have difficulty breathing. Doctors should test both the patient’s urine output and platelet count. If the condition worsens, you could suffer organ damage or tissue death.

The most dangerous stage is septic shock, which includes all of “the signs and symptoms of severe sepsis — plus extremely low blood pressure that doesn’t adequately respond to simple fluid replacement.” A patient in septic shock has a 50% chance of dying.

How does a person get sepsis?

Sepsis is often linked to hospital visits; the CDC found about 70% of all sepsis patients “had recently used health care services or had chronic diseases requiring frequent medical care.” But the majority of patients – about 80% – who develop sepsis do so outside of a hospital. That is because an infection can take root anywhere: at your doctor’s, at a ballgame, in the privacy of your own home, etc. There is no real way of determining who might develop the condition, thought studies show that patients who have been septic before may be more prone to developing the condition again, just as Ms. Jones was.

The most important thing to remember is this: if you have an infection and begin to feel worse, you should seek medical help immediately, in order to rule sepsis out. It is always better to be safe than sorry.

If you or a loved one suffered harm because of an undiagnosed case of sepsis, you may have grounds for a medical malpractice lawsuit. Plaxen Adler Muncy, P.A. has upheld the rights of injury victims in Maryland for more than 35 years. To schedule a free consultation with an experienced Maryland medical malpractice lawyer, please call 410-730-7737 or fill out our contact form.