Sepsis Care Solutions
Get the Facts
Sepsis is the body's extreme immune response to a severe infection. This systemic inflammatory reaction can cause significant complications, including organ dysfunction and organ failure, potentially leading to long-term disability or patient death. The number of deaths caused by sepsis is constantly increasing due to the aging of the population and antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
Sepsis symptoms mirror other conditions, which makes it difficult to diagnose and could lead to misdiagnosis or underdiagnosis. For every hour of delayed treatment, the risk of death increases by between 4% and 9%.1 It is estimated that as many as 80% of sepsis deaths could be prevented with rapid diagnosis and appropriate treatment.1 In fact, giving patients suspected of having sepsis antibiotics antimicrobials within the first hour reduces mortality by 33%.3
Diagnostics and Sepsis Care
There is no singular solution for the diagnosis of sepsis because underlying infections can be caused by different pathogens. Early diagnostic intelligence helps shorten the time to treatment and allows hospitals to optimize patient care with the right antimicrobial therapy at the right time. This is particularly important because infections are increasingly resistant to treatment. Additionally, ongoing surveillance capabilities support the timely discontinuation of treatment, which help minimize the risks and impact of antimicrobial overuse.
Diagnostics can inform sepsis care at every stage of the patient's journey—from initial presentation and risk assessment, to pathogen detection, identification, susceptibility testing, monitoring patient progress, and safe antibiotic discontinuation.
Sepsis may be diagnosed too late because the clinical symptoms, including high fever and increased pulse or respiratory rate, are non-specific. In this race against time4, measuring procalcitonin levels with VIDAS® B·R·A·H·M·S PCT™ gives an early indication of severe bacterial infection in about 20 minutes. Clinicians can use this information when deciding empiric antimicrobial therapy, which in turn helps reduce the risk of injury and death.
VIDAS® B•R•A•H•M•S PCT™
Important Biomarker for Improved Patient Management
Detects procalcitonin, a biomarker that aids in the risk assessment for progression to severe sepsis and septic shock. PCT also aids in decision making on antibiotic therapy for patients with lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI).
After initial risk assessment and administration of empiric therapy, pathogen detection, identification, and susceptibility testing provide critical information about whether the initial therapy needs to be adjusted. This step is especially crucial if the patient has a drug-resistant infection.
BIOFIRE® FILMARRAY® TORCH
Easier testing. Faster results.
With integrated sample preparation, amplification, detection, and analysis, the BIOFIRE TORCH uses multiplex PCR technology to simultaneously test for a comprehensive grouping of targets in ~45 minutes to ~1 hour.
BACT/ALERT® VIRTUO®
Automated System for Faster Blood Culture
The first fully automated blood culture system, helping to refine and redesign laboratory workflow to optimize efficiency.
VITEK® MS PRIME
New-Generation Mass Spectrometry Microbial Identification System
A benchtop high-throughput automated identification system with a robust database that facilitates fast and confident microbial identification.
VITEK® 2
Fully integrated Identification and Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing
Automated system for routine antimicrobial susceptibility built to enable efficient workflow and fast AST results. Its fully integrated ID/AST approach is designed to rapidly and confidently guide patient therapy.
ETEST®
Antibiotic Susceptibility Testing Reagent Strips to Determine On-Scale MICs
ETEST complements the VITEK® 2 automated system platform by offering a flexible and precise minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) solution to test additional antibiotics.
To optimize patient outcomes, physicians need to monitor patients for complications and for response to treatment. Diagnostics provide valuable information for critical points in the decision-making process, including assessing risk of acute kidney injury, which is a common complication of sepsis. Diagnostics can also help optimize treatment by providing information about patient progress and response to antibiotics.
VIDAS® B•R•A•H•M•S PCT™
Important Biomarker for Improved Patient Management
Detects procalcitonin, a biomarker that aids in the risk assessment for progression to severe sepsis and septic shock. PCT also aids in decision making on antibiotic therapy for patients with lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI).
VIDAS® NEPHROCHECK®
Know Earlier. Intervene Sooner. Avoid AKI.
VIDAS® NEPHROCHECK® measures urinary TIMP-2 & IGFBP-7, specific urinary biomarkers for early risk assessment of moderate to severe Acute Kidney Injury (AKI). The VIDAS® NEPHROCHECK® assay is intended to be used in conjunction with clinical evaluation as an aid in the risk assessment for moderate or severe acute kidney injury (AKI) in acutely ill patients.
To support healthcare systems in their efforts of systematically screening and understanding of sepsis, new analytic tools are available to enhance data application, collaborative communication and decision making.
Integrating Sepsis Care and Antimicrobial Stewardship
Every hour counts with sepsis patients, so there is a strong drive to initiate antimicrobial treatment as quickly as possible. But, because sepsis is a result of an underlying infection which may or may not be resistant to treatment, we must address antimicrobial stewardship as part of sepsis care management. Additionally, Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) infections, which often result from antibiotic exposure, call for more effective efforts to reduce the unnecessary and prolonged use of antibiotics.
Fast and actionable diagnostics remain a key component to antimicrobial stewardship efforts, from the onset of suspected sepsis to pathogen identification, antimicrobial susceptibility testing, patient monitoring, and antimicrobial discontinuation. The total sepsis solution from bioMérieux may help stewardship team improve antimicrobial prescribing practices and patient outcomes.
Sepsis Resources
Sepsis Training & Education Opportunities
External Partner Resources
References
- Batch, B. Sepsis is the third leading cause of death in US hospitals. But quick action can save lives. AAMC News. 2023.
- A., et. al. Effect of immediate administration of antibiotics in patients with sepsis in tertiary care: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Clin Thera. 2017;39(1):190-202. doi: 10.1016/clinthera.2016.12.003
- bioMérieux. Sepsis. bioMérieux Global Website. Available at: https://www.biomerieux.com/en/sepsis. Accessed Aug 28, 2020.
- VIDAS® B•R•A•H•M•S PCT™ Package Insert. On file. bioMérieux.
PRN 057174 Rev 0.1B