The 1992 statement from the ACCP/ SCCM Consensus Conference introduced into common parlance the systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) which represents the complex findings resulting from systemic activation of the innate immune response triggered by localized or generalized infection, trauma, thermal injury, or sterile inflammatory processes. However, criteria for SIRS are considered to be too nonspecific to be of utility in diagnosing a cause for the syndrome or in identifying a distinct pattern of host response. Sepsis is defined as the presence (probable or documented) of infection together with systemic manifestations of infection, whereas severe sepsis refers to sepsis plus sepsis-induced organ dysfunction or tissue hypoperfusion. Septic shock is defined as sepsis-induced hypotension persisting despite adequate fluid resuscitation, in the absence of other causes for hypotension.[1][2][3][4][5]
SIRS criteria identify 88% of patients who have severe sepsis (infection plus organ failure). Sepsis is considered present if infection is highly suspected or proven and two or more of the following systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) criteria are met:[6][7][8]
Sepsis is defined as the presence (probable or documented) of infection together with systemic manifestations of infection. Diagnostic criteria for sepsis are as follows:
Sepsis = infection (documented or suspected) and some of the following:
General variables
Fever (>38.3°C)
Hypothermia (core temperature <36°C)
Heart rate >90/min–1 or more than two SD above the normal value for age
Tachypnea
Altered mental status
Significant edema or positive fluid balance (>20 mL/kg over 24 hr)
Hyperglycemia (plasma glucose >140mg/dL or 7.7 mmol/L) in the absence of diabetes
Inflammatory variables
Leukocytosis (WBC count >12,000 μL–1)
Leukopenia (WBC count <4000 μL–1)
Normal WBC count with greater than 10% immature forms
Plasma C-reactive protein more than two SD above the normal value
Plasma procalcitonin more than two SD above the normal value
Hemodynamic variables
Arterial hypotension (SBP <90mm Hg, MAP <70mm Hg, or an SBP decrease >40mm Hg in adults or less than two SD below normal for age)
Organ dysfunction variables
Arterial hypoxemia (Pao2/Fio2 <300)
Acute oliguria (urine output <0.5 mL/kg/hr for at least 2 hrs despite adequate fluid resuscitation)
Creatinine increase >0.5mg/dL or 44.2 μmol/L
Coagulation abnormalities (INR >1.5 or aPTT >60 s)
Ileus (absent bowel sounds)
Thrombocytopenia (platelet count <100,000 μL–1)
Hyperbilirubinemia (plasma total bilirubin >4mg/dL or 70 μmol/L)
Severe sepsis is defined as sepsis plus sepsis-induced organ dysfunction or tissue hypoperfusion.
Severe sepsis = sepsis-induced tissue hypoperfusion or organ dysfunction (any of the following thought to be due to the infection)
Sepsis-induced hypotension (SBP of <90 mm Hg or MAP <70 mm Hg or a SBP decrease >40 mm Hg or <2 SD below normal for age in the absence of other causes of hypotension)
Lactate above upper limits laboratory normal
Urine output <0.5 mL/kg/hr for more than 2 hrs despite adequate fluid resuscitation
Acute lung injury with PaO2/FIO2 <250 in the absence of pneumonia as infection source
Acute lung injury with PaO2/FIO2 <200 in the presence of pneumonia as infection source
Creatinine >2.0 mg/dL (176.8 μmol/L)
Bilirubin >2 mg/dL (34.2 μmol/L)
Platelet count <100,000 μL
Coagulopathy (international normalized ratio >1.5)
Septic shock is defined as sepsis-induced hypotension persisting despite adequate fluid resuscitation, in the absence of other causes for hypotension.
Septic shock in adult patients refers to a state of acute circulatory failure characterized by persistent arterial hypotension unexplained by other causes.
Septic shock in pediatric patients is defined as 1) a suspected infection manifested by hypothermia or hyperthermia, and 2) clinical signs of inadequate tissue perfusion including any of the following:[9]
Decreased or altered mental status
Decreased urine output <1 ml/kg/h
Bounding peripheral pulses (warm shock)
Diminished peripheral pulses compared with central pulses (cold shock)
Septic shock in newborns manifests as tachycardia, respiratory distress, poor feeding, poor tone, poor color, tachypnea, diarrhea, or reduced perfusion, particularly in the presence of a maternal history of chorioamnionitis or prolonged rupture of membranes.
Refractory Septic shock is defined as sepsis with refractory arterial hypotension and maintenance of the systemic mean blood pressure of >60 mmHg or >80 mmHg (in hypertensives) despite adequate fluid resuscitation requires:
The criteria for diagnosing an adult with sepsis does not apply to infants under one month of age (neonatal sepsis). In infants, only the presence of infection plus a "constellation" of signs and symptoms consistent with the systemic response to infection are required for diagnosis.
In pediatrics, the Phoenix 2024 criteria—also known as Phoenix Pediatric Sepsis (PPS)—are now recommended to define sepsis and septic shock. These criteria apply to children aged 1 month to <18 years and aim to identify life-threatening organ dysfunction due to infection.[10]
Sepsis with Suspected/Confirmed Infection can be identified as a Phoenix Score of at least 2 points:
Respiratory (0-3 points)
0 Points: PaO2:FiO2 > 400 or Sp02:Fi02 > 292 (only calculated if Sp02 </=97%)
1 Point: PaO2:FiO2 < 400 on any Respiratory Support or Sp02:Fi02 < 292 (on support)
2 Points: PaO2:FiO2 100 – 200 on Mechanical Ventilation or Sp02:Fi02 148-220 on IMV
3 Points: PaO2:FiO2 < 100 or Sp02:Fi02 <148
Cardiovascular (0-6 points)
0 Points: No Vasoactive Medication, Lactate < 5 mmol/L
1 Point each: 1 Vasoactive Medication, Lactate 5-10.9 mmol/L
administrative definitions using implicit sepsis codes
CDC ASE mortality rates for same year (adjusteded)
0.70
49%
Variation in the identification of sepsis using administrative and claims data, including for the identification of septic shock, has been documented by Rhee et al[13].
In one example, claims data was compared to clinical data extracted from the electronic health record for detecting sepsis-3 and the claims data performed with much variation in quality[13].
In another study, automated EHR data performed well compared to physician reviews of charts[14].
In EHR data, using SIRS or QSOFA alone is not as good as combining these[15].
Using administrative data is much improve if laboratory data is included. Ther Pearson correlation coefficient improved from 0.53 to 0.93[11]. This is equivalent to increasing the proportion of variance explained from 28% to 86%.
Subsequent work by Rhee improved correlation with clinical data[12]
The stability of administrative data over time has been used to argue for the validity of administrative data[11].
Variation in reported cases to the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH), as part of Rory's Regulations, may be "driven more by under-recognition than attempts to game the system, with minimal bias to risk-adjusted hospital performance measurement"[16].
↑"American College of Chest Physicians/Society of Critical Care Medicine Consensus Conference: definitions for sepsis and organ failure and guidelines for the use of innovative therapies in sepsis". Critical Care Medicine. 20 (6): 864–874. 1992-06. ISSN0090-3493. PMID1597042. Check date values in: |date= (help)
↑Levy, Mitchell M.; Fink, Mitchell P.; Marshall, John C.; Abraham, Edward; Angus, Derek; Cook, Deborah; Cohen, Jonathan; Opal, Steven M.; Vincent, Jean-Louis; Ramsay, Graham; SCCM/ESICM/ACCP/ATS/SIS (2003-04). "2001 SCCM/ESICM/ACCP/ATS/SIS International Sepsis Definitions Conference". Critical Care Medicine. 31 (4): 1250–1256. doi:10.1097/01.CCM.0000050454.01978.3B. ISSN0090-3493. PMID12682500. Check date values in: |date= (help)
↑Dellinger, R. Phillip; Carlet, Jean M.; Masur, Henry; Gerlach, Herwig; Calandra, Thierry; Cohen, Jonathan; Gea-Banacloche, Juan; Keh, Didier; Marshall, John C.; Parker, Margaret M.; Ramsay, Graham; Zimmerman, Janice L.; Vincent, Jean-Louis; Levy, Mitchell M.; Surviving Sepsis Campaign Management Guidelines Committee (2004-03). "Surviving Sepsis Campaign guidelines for management of severe sepsis and septic shock". Critical Care Medicine. 32 (3): 858–873. ISSN0090-3493. PMID15090974. Check date values in: |date= (help)
↑Dellinger, R. Phillip; Levy, Mitchell M.; Carlet, Jean M.; Bion, Julian; Parker, Margaret M.; Jaeschke, Roman; Reinhart, Konrad; Angus, Derek C.; Brun-Buisson, Christian; Beale, Richard; Calandra, Thierry; Dhainaut, Jean-Francois; Gerlach, Herwig; Harvey, Maurene; Marini, John J.; Marshall, John; Ranieri, Marco; Ramsay, Graham; Sevransky, Jonathan; Thompson, B. Taylor; Townsend, Sean; Vender, Jeffrey S.; Zimmerman, Janice L.; Vincent, Jean-Louis; International Surviving Sepsis Campaign Guidelines Committee; American Association of Critical-Care Nurses; American College of Chest Physicians; American College of Emergency Physicians; Canadian Critical Care Society; European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases; European Society of Intensive Care Medicine; European Respiratory Society; International Sepsis Forum; Japanese Association for Acute Medicine; Japanese Society of Intensive Care Medicine; Society of Critical Care Medicine; Society of Hospital Medicine; Surgical Infection Society; World Federation of Societies of Intensive and Critical Care Medicine (2008-01). "Surviving Sepsis Campaign: international guidelines for management of severe sepsis and septic shock: 2008". Critical Care Medicine. 36 (1): 296–327. doi:10.1097/01.CCM.0000298158.12101.41. ISSN1530-0293. PMID18158437. Check date values in: |date= (help)
↑Dellinger, R. Phillip; Levy, Mitchell M.; Rhodes, Andrew; Annane, Djillali; Gerlach, Herwig; Opal, Steven M.; Sevransky, Jonathan E.; Sprung, Charles L.; Douglas, Ivor S.; Jaeschke, Roman; Osborn, Tiffany M.; Nunnally, Mark E.; Townsend, Sean R.; Reinhart, Konrad; Kleinpell, Ruth M.; Angus, Derek C.; Deutschman, Clifford S.; Machado, Flavia R.; Rubenfeld, Gordon D.; Webb, Steven A.; Beale, Richard J.; Vincent, Jean-Louis; Moreno, Rui; Surviving Sepsis Campaign Guidelines Committee including the Pediatric Subgroup (2013-02). "Surviving sepsis campaign: international guidelines for management of severe sepsis and septic shock: 2012". Critical Care Medicine. 41 (2): 580–637. doi:10.1097/CCM.0b013e31827e83af. ISSN1530-0293. PMID23353941. Check date values in: |date= (help)
↑Bone RC, Balk RA, Cerra FB, Dellinger RP, Fein AM, Knaus WA, Schein RM, Sibbald WJ. Definitions for sepsis and organ failure and guidelines for the use of innovative therapies in sepsis. The ACCP/SCCM Consensus Conference Committee. American College of Chest Physicians/Society of Critical Care Medicine. Chest. 1992 Jun;101(6):1644-55. PMID 1303622.