There are big differences in the immune response between people: one person has few symptoms of an infection, while another patient becomes seriously ill and requires treatment in an intensive care unit. A large percentage of patients continue to have long-term complaints even after discharge from the hospital, which leads to overall reduced function. To limit organ damage and increase the chances of survival, it is important to recognize sepsis early and fight it with antibiotics, fluids for infusion and, if necessary, supportive treatment in the ICU.
Due to the large differences in the immune response to an infection among individuals, recognizing sepsis early on can be difficult. Furthermore, there is no treatment available that targets the specific mechanisms that lead to organ failure. In this lesson, speakers will explain what sepsis is and how UMCG researchers closely study the differences between patients in order to improve recognition of early sepsis. With the timely recognition of early sepsis, they hope to develop new targeted treatments to prevent organ failure.
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