Review article: Sepsis in the emergency department - Part 1: Definitions and outcomes

Stephen Pj Macdonald; Julian M Williams; Amith Shetty; Rinaldo Bellomo; Simon Finfer; Nathan Shapiro; Gerben Keijzers

doi:10.1111/1742-6723.12886

Review article: Sepsis in the emergency department - Part 1: Definitions and outcomes

Emerg Med Australas. 2017 Dec;29(6):619-625. doi: 10.1111/1742-6723.12886. Epub 2017 Nov 2.

Authors

Stephen Pj Macdonald^{1

2

3}, Julian M Williams^{4

5}, Amith Shetty^{6

7}, Rinaldo Bellomo^{8

9}, Simon Finfer^{10

11}, Nathan Shapiro^{12

13}, Gerben Keijzers^{14

15

16}

Affiliations

¹ Centre for Clinical Research in Emergency Medicine, Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research, Perth, Western Australia, Australia.
² Department of Emergency Medicine, Royal Perth Hospital, Perth, Western Australia, Australia.
³ Division of Emergency Medicine, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia.
⁴ Department of Emergency Medicine, Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
⁵ Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
⁶ Department of Emergency Medicine, Westmead Hospital, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
⁷ Centre for Research in Critical Infection, Westmead Millennium Institute, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
⁸ Department of Intensive Care, Austin Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
⁹ School of Medicine, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
¹⁰ The George Institute for Global Health, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
¹¹ Department of Intensive Care, Royal North Shore Hospital, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
¹² Department of Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
¹³ Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
¹⁴ Department of Emergency Medicine, Gold Coast University Hospital, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia.
¹⁵ School of Medicine, Bond University, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia.
¹⁶ School of Medicine, Griffith University, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia.

PMID: 29094474
DOI: 10.1111/1742-6723.12886

Abstract

Sepsis has recently been redefined as acute organ dysfunction due to infection. The ED plays a critical role in identifying patients with sepsis. This is challenging due to the heterogeneity of the syndrome, and the lack of an objective standard diagnostic test. While overall mortality rates from sepsis appear to be falling, there is an increasing burden of morbidity among survivors. This largely reflects the growing proportion of older patients with comorbid illnesses among those treated for sepsis.

Keywords: emergency service; hospital; sepsis.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Emergency Service, Hospital / organization & administration
Hospital Mortality
Humans
ROC Curve
Sepsis / diagnosis*
Sepsis / therapy*