Background: Sepsis is a life-threatening condition involving organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated response to infection [1]. Sepsis is the leading cause of 30-day unplanned readmissions nationwide [2]. At UF Health Shands Hospital, the 30-day readmission rate for sepsis patients is 17% compared to 13% for all adult patients. Of those readmitted for sepsis, 38% [...]

Background: The Surviving Sepsis Campaign strongly recommends that all hospitals screen for sepsis as part of performance improvement. The effect of screening for sepsis on mortality, length of stay, and time to antibiotics is uncertain. Methods: A systematic literature search was conducted using Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, Ovid Embase, Ovid Medline, Scopus, and Web of [...]

Background: Sepsis is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality among hospitalized patients. Previous studies have demonstrated that rates of sepsis and its complications – including organ failure, readmission, and death – are higher among Black patients than white patients (1, 2). While some of these differences can be explained by socioeconomic inequities, comorbidities, and [...]

Background: Diagnostic errors (DE) are common in patients who die or go to the ICU and are caused by gaps in diagnostic processes. Few data describe whether this observation holds true among patients with sepsis, a disease that progresses quickly and requires a range of clinical information to diagnose correctly. The objective of our study [...]

Background: Early administration of antimicrobials is one of the most effective interventions to reduce sepsis mortality. Despite this, delays in antibiotic initiation occur, particularly in patients presenting without hypotension. We sought to understand patient characteristics and presenting symptoms associated with antibiotic delays in this population. Methods: Cohort study of adult patients hospitalized with community-onset sepsis [...]

Background: Sepsis, a dysregulated host immune response to infection leading to life-threatening organ dysfunction[1], is a common, fast-moving condition, and the leading cause of in-hospital death. Most cases develop in the community and present to Emergency Departments (ED)[2], where urgent action is required to prevent resultant morbidity and mortality[3]. However, the presentation of sepsis is [...]

Case Presentation: A 73-year-old female, bedbound, nursing home resident with a medical history of ESRD on dialysis, diabetes and hypertension, presented complaining of body aches, malaise, chills and cough. She was afebrile with normal range vitals. CBC showed a WBC of 21.8 with neutrophil predominance. CXR without focal pulmonary findings and urinalysis was negative for [...]

Case Presentation: A 63-year-old woman with end-stage renal disease on dialysis and bilateral lung transplant was admitted from a rehab facility with generalized weakness and anemia in the setting of missed dialysis. At presentation, she had fluid-responsive hypotension, borderline fever, and a normal heart rate. She had no localizing infectious signs or symptoms. An infectious [...]

Case Presentation: A 26-year-old male with HbSS sickle cell disease and a history of recurrent hospitalizations for vaso-occlusive crises, requiring a right chest port for pain management and IV fluids, presented with sepsis and an acute vaso-occlusive crisis. Initial infectious workup, including chest X-ray, CT of the chest, abdomen, and pelvis, and urinalysis, was unremarkable. [...]

Case Presentation: A 75 year old with a presented with a chief complaint of fever. The patient reported headache, dizziness, myalgia, dyspnea, constipation, and denied nausea. On assessment, the patient was mildly febrile and tachycardic with other vital signs within normal limits. The remainder of the exam demonstrated normal cardiovascular, respiratory, abdominal exam and gross [...]