Diagnosis and treatment criteria were recently updated based on the Sepsis-3 guidelines, which recommend the sequential organ failure assessment for accurate characterization of organ dysfunction. Large randomized controlled trials have found neutral results with early goal-directed therapy. To improve outcomes, treatment bundles incorporating standards for early sepsis treatment, including antibiotic and steroid treatment, were developed. Thus, future research should address the effects of steroids and immune-modulating agents on refractory septic shock as well as the development of new coagulopathy therapies and dynamic assessment tools.
Diagnosis ; Sepsis ; Shock, Septic ; Steroids ; Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome

The concepts of systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) and scoring system were defined by the journal of Bone in 1992. SIRS was described as occurrence of two or more clinical criteria in four ones (fever or hypothermia, tachypnea, tachycardia, and leukocytosis). An early diagnosis and estimation of systemic inflammation in patients is helpful for treatment selection. This paper reviews the application of SIRS scoring system, which has been extensively validated for large groups of critical care patients with severe injury and critical surgical diseases. Recent studies have documented SIRS score as a significant predictive parameter of adverse outcome in critical care patients. Furthermore, some studies also give us a suggestion on how to reduce the overload systemic response.
Cross Infection ; complications ; Humans ; Length of Stay ; Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome ; diagnosis ; mortality ; prevention & control

Gout occurs as a response to monosodium urate crystal, that is present in joints, bones and soft tissue. The classic symptoms of gouty arthritis are recurrent attacks of acute, markedly painful monoarticular or oligoarticular inflammation; but polyarthritis and chronic arthritis can also occur. Differential diagnosis from infectious arthritis is important. A definitive diagnosis requires the direct identification of urate crystals in the joint, and the exclusion of infection. We report the case of systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), developed from acute polyarticular gout. SIRS is characterized by loss of local control of inflammation, or an overly activated response resulting in an exaggerated systemic response. The SIRS was presumably due to systemic effects of a localized inflammatory response to urate crystals.
Arthritis ; Arthritis, Gouty ; Arthritis, Infectious ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Gout ; Inflammation ; Joints ; Sepsis ; Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome ; Uric Acid

The inflammatory reaction is the important pathologic foundation of growth and development of many diseases. Previously, anti-pathogen is the chief treating principle on infectious diseases, while anti-inflammation is the supplementary one. With the deep-going investigation on the effect of inflammatory reaction in the pathological process of severe infectious diseases in recent decade, especially the advance of concept on systemic inflammatory reaction syndrome (SIRS), anti-inflammatory treatment has become the vital link for comprehensive intervention therapy of severe infectious disease. Close correlation is also presented between numerous non-infectious diseases with systemic inflammatory reaction, e.g., atherosclerosis is one kind of inflammatory reaction, there are effects of many inflammatory factors on the metabolic process in patients with obesity. The regulation of Chinese herbs on inflammatory reaction may be one of the well cut-in points of integrative Chinese and Western medical study of anti-inflammation.
Anti-Inflammatory Agents ; therapeutic use ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Drug Therapy, Combination ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Phytotherapy ; Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome ; drug therapy

OBJECTIVETo investigate the significance of CD11b expression in neutrophils and lymphocytes in children with systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS).

METHODSCD11b expression in neutrophils and lymphocytes was measured using flow cytometry in 36 children with SIRS (SIRS group) and 28 children with infectious disease but without SIRS (control group). The sensitivity and specificity of neutrophil CD11b for diagnosis of SIRS were evaluated.

RESULTSDuring the acute phase, an increased CD11b expression in neutrophils (96.7+/-8.1%) was observed in the SIRS group compared with the control group (85.1+/-5.1%) (p<0.05). Using neutrophil CD11b expression >92.2% as a cut-off value for diagnosis of SIRS, the sensitivity and the specificity were 97.2 % and 92.9% respectively. Lymphocytic CD11b expression in the SIRS group (13.4+/-8.6%) was lower than that in the control group (19.2+/-6.4%) in the acute phase (p<0.05). In the SIRS group, lymphocytic CD11b expression was remarkably suppressed in the severe sepsis subgroup (7.27+/-3.04%), showing significantly decreased expression compared with the non-infectious subgroup (19.3+/-2.9%) and the sepsis subgroup (15.9+/-12.5%) (p<0.01). In the convalescence stage lymphocytic CD11b expression in the SIRS group was similar to that in the control group.

CONCLUSIONSCD11b expression in neutrophils may serve as a reliable indicator for diagnosis of SIRS. The down-regulation of lymphocytic CD11b expression might be a signal of the condition aggravation in children with SIRS.

C-Reactive Protein ; analysis ; CD11b Antigen ; blood ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Flow Cytometry ; Humans ; Infant ; Lymphocytes ; chemistry ; Male ; Neutrophils ; chemistry ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome ; diagnosis ; immunology

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to investigate whether obtaining serum procalcitonin (PCT) levels in patients with systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) helps the differential diagnosis between sepsis and non-sepsis and predicts disease severity in the emergency department (ED). METHODS: This prospective study enrolled 132 consecutive adult patients with SIRS who visited the ED. Serum C-reactive protein (CRP) levels and serum PCT levels were compared between sepsis and non-sepsis groups upon ED admission. Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA), Multiple Organ Dysfunction Score (MODS), and Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) III scores were calculated, and their correlations with CRP and PCT levels were evaluated. The PCT and CRP levels were assessed to predict sepsis in terms of comparing receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. RESULTS: Eighty patients were included in the sepsis group. The levels of PCT and CRP in the sepsis group were significantly higher. In the sepsis group, the initial serum PCT correlated with the SOFA and MODS scores, and this also correlated in the non-sepsis group, but CRP did not. No differences were found when the PCT and CRP ROCs were compared. CONCLUSIONS: Correlation between PCT and severity in the non-sepsis group is considered to be clinically meaningless because of low levels. Additionally, PCT levels had similar diagnostic value for sepsis as CRP levels. PCT is recommended for prediction of severity in sepsis patients in ED, but not for differential diagnosis between sepsis and non-sepsis.
Adult ; APACHE ; C-Reactive Protein ; Calcitonin ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Emergencies ; Humans ; Multiple Organ Failure ; Organ Dysfunction Scores ; Prospective Studies ; Protein Precursors ; ROC Curve ; Sepsis ; Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome

Critical care medicine (CCM) is one of the challenging issue in clinical practice. The key issues of CCM include acute lung injury, acute respiratory distress syndrome, and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS), generally termed as systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS). When SIRS occurs at high altitude areas (H-SIRS), it will need be distinguished with an idiopathic acute high altitude sickness (generally termed as acute high altitude reaction syndrome), that make the differential diagnosis and treatment of H-SIRS even more difficult. It has became a high priority to properly address the relevant issues in this field: construction of disciplines; identification of speciality scopes; standardization of the diagnosis and treatment of CCM; and decreasing of the mortality of MODS at high altitude.
Acute Lung Injury ; diagnosis ; prevention & control ; therapy ; Altitude ; Altitude Sickness ; diagnosis ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Humans ; Multiple Organ Failure ; diagnosis ; prevention & control ; therapy ; Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Adult ; diagnosis ; prevention & control ; therapy ; Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome ; diagnosis ; prevention & control ; therapy

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the efficacy of using procalcitonin (PCT) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) to differentiate sepsis from non-infectious systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS).

METHODSWe made a prospective study in a general intensive care unit at Peking Union Medical College Hospital. Twenty patients with sepsis and 31 patients with non-infectious SIRS were enrolled in this study. Serum concentrations of PCT, IL-6 and C-reactive protein (CRP) were determined within 24 h after clinical onset of sepsis or non-infectious SIRS. Leukocyte count, percentage of neutrophils, and absolute neutrophil count, as well as maximal body temperature were also recorded.

RESULTSSerum concentrations of PCT, IL-6, and CRP, as well as maximal body temperature, were significantly higher in septic patients [3.6 (1.8, 27.5) micro g/L, 810 +/- 516 ng/L, 180 +/- 108 g/L, 38.6 +/- 1.2 degrees C] than non-infectious SIRS patients [0.5 (0.2, 1.8) micro g/L, 235 +/- 177 ng/L, 109 +/- 70 g/L, 37.9 +/- 0.9 degrees C]. IL-6 and PCT exhibited the best discriminative power between sepsis and non-infectious SIRS, with sensitivity above 80% and specificity above 70%. A sepsis score with combination of IL-6 and PCT showed the best discriminative power with the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.923.

CONCLUSIONSAssessing IL-6 and PCT levels are more reliable ways to differentiate sepsis from non-infectious SIRS, compared with conventional inflammatory parameters.

Adult ; Aged ; Calcitonin ; blood ; Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Female ; Humans ; Interleukin-6 ; blood ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Protein Precursors ; blood ; Sepsis ; blood ; Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome ; blood ; diagnosis

BACKGROUND: The mortality of liver abscess markedly decreased because of the improvement of diagnosis and treatment modalities, however, the incidence is still high and various complications have been developed. Our study was to clarify the clinical features, complications, changing patterns of causative organisms and predicting parameters for development of complications in liver abscess. METHODS: We reviewed 197 cases of pyogenic and amebic liver abscesses treated at Chonnam University Hospital from January 1989 to March 2003. These cases were divided into subgroups by time of occurrence, and the data was reviewed comparatively. Predicting parameters for development of complications in recent 5 years were also analyzed. RESULTS: The male to female ratio was 1.59 : 1 and the peak incidence age of liver abscess was in the 7th decade. There were no significant interval changes in incidence of pyogenic liver abscess (96.4%) and amebic liver abscess (3.6%) from January 1989 to March 2003. The most common infection route in pyogenic liver abscess was biliary tract (45.8%), followed by cryptogenic cause (44.2%), pulmonary disease (2.6%), hematogenous (2.1%) and abdominal trauma (1.5%). The pus culture came out positive in 50.4% of pyogenic liver abscess. Klebsiella pneumoniae was the most commonly isolated organism in pyogenic liver abscess (32.9%). The significant predicting parameters for development of complications were age (>or=60), systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS, >or=2 factors), C-reactive protein (CRP, >or=8 mg/dL), bilirubin (>or=2 mg/dL), albumin (<3 g/dL) and AST (>or=200 IU/L, p<0.05). CONCLUSION: There were no significant interval changes in etiologies and predisposing conditions of liver abscess in Gwangju-Chonnam Province from January 1989 to March 2003. Age, SIRS, CRP, bilirubin, albumin and AST were considered as significant predicting parameters for development of complications in liver abscess.
Biliary Tract ; Bilirubin ; C-Reactive Protein ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Jeollanam-do ; Klebsiella pneumoniae ; Liver Abscess* ; Liver Abscess, Amebic ; Liver Abscess, Pyogenic ; Liver* ; Lung Diseases ; Male ; Mortality ; Suppuration ; Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome

OBJECTIVESepsis and septic shock remain a common problem that results in significant mortality and morbidity in pediatric intensive care units (PICU). According to literature, the use of more physiologic steroid replacement therapy is associated with hemodynamic and survival benefits in adult patients with relative adrenal insufficiency (RAI) and catecholamine-resistant septic shock. But little information is available in children. The aim of the current prospective study was to determine the prevalence of adrenal insufficiency in children with sepsis and septic shock using a low-dose adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) stimulation test (1 microg/1.73 m2) in children.

METHODSThe authors performed cortisol estimation at baseline and after low-dose (1 microg/1.73 m2) ACTH stimulation at 30 mins in children during the first 24 hours in patients with sepsis or septic shock admitted to our PICU. Adrenal insufficiency was defined as a response < or = 90 microg/L. Absolute adrenal insufficiency (AAI) was further defined as baseline cortisol (T0) < 200 microg/L and RAI insufficiency by T0 > or = 200 microg/L.

RESULTSSixty-two consecutive cases with sepsis and septic shock admitted to PICU of Shanghai Jiaotong University Affiliated Children's Hospital from April, 2006 to March, 2007. The median age was 37.6 months (range, 2 - 168 months), and their gender distribution was 42 (67.7%) males and 20 (32.3%) females, 53 cases had sepsis (85.5%) and 9 had septic shock (14.5%). The mean pediatric critical illness score (PCIS) was 79.3 +/- 9.2 and median pediatric risk of mortality score (PRMSIII) 11.3 (5 - 19), respectively. Overall mortality of sepsis and septic shock was 27.42%. The evaluation of adrenal insufficiency was conducted as follows. (1) The mean cortisol levels at baseline (T0) and 30 mins after ACTH stimulation (T1) were (318.6 +/- 230.4) microg/L, (452.3 +/- 230.7) microg/L and (454.7 +/- 212.7) microg/L, (579.3 +/- 231.9) microg/L in patients with severe sepsis and septic shock group, respectively. There were no significant difference between the two groups (P > 0.05). (2) The proportion of patients with adrenal insufficiency in the study population was 40.3% as defined by a response < or = 90 microg/L post test. The proportion of patients with adrenal insufficiency in sepsis and septic shock were 39.6% and 44.4%, respectively (chi2) = 0.073, P > 0.05). (3) The serum T0 and T1 levels were (320.5 +/- 223.9) microg/L, (462.3 +/- 212.0) microg/L and (384.3 +/- 258.3) microg/L, (500.7 +/- 470.6) microg/L, respectively, and the proportion of patients with adrenal insufficiency were 37.8% and 47.1% in the survivors and the dead (P > 0.05). The levels of T0 and T1 were related to the PCIS (P < 0.05). The morbidity of adrenal insufficiency was not related to the PCIS, PRISMIII, and number of organ that developed functional insufficiency (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSAdrenal insufficiency may occur in patients with sepsis and septic shock in children. ACTH stimulation test may be helpful to determine whether corticosteroid therapy has a survival benefit in patients with relative adrenal insufficiency. A low-dose ACTH stimulation test can be used to evaluate the adrenal function status of severe sepsis and septic shock in children.

Adolescent ; Adrenal Insufficiency ; diagnosis ; etiology ; Adrenocorticotropic Hormone ; metabolism ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Intensive Care Units, Pediatric ; Male ; Prospective Studies ; Sepsis ; physiopathology ; Shock, Septic ; physiopathology ; Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome ; physiopathology