Please talk to me about Septis

[FlamingoFloss]

Just that really. Please can u hear your stories - with we you or someone you know. Thank you

Especially if you don’t have typical symptoms. My sons developed into septic shock because he didn’t have a temperature so it was tricky to spot.

By the time he developed other typical symptoms such as confusion and rapid breathing, he quickly became unresponsive and had a cardiac arrest.

So incredibly scary how fast it can happen.

@ChocHotolate 's facts are perfectly correct. Check your comprehension.

Spesis is very serious but is not an infection. @ChocHotolate is not saying it isn’t serious.

Why do you want to know @FlamingoFloss ? There are some quite distressing stories here, I wouldn’t want people to share more than they might be comfortable with.

My daughters post mortem reports that an overwhelming Strep A bacterial pneumonia super imposed on top of a basic childhood viral infection, even though she was responding to antibiotics in hospital Sepsis took hold and she died. She was 3. Worst moment of my life seeing my dd lifeless in a hospital bed with a tube sticking out of her mouth.

Everyone misunderstood your initial post!

I have been in hospital many times and seen sepsis which didn't seem a big deal in one person but was significant in another. My experience was horrific, 6 months in hospital with long term problems. I think for me, because I had a humungous infection of peritonitis through my entire abdomen it made my situation and long term problems more acute.
I've definitely seen people deal with it with much less trouble whilst an inpatient and did question whether it even was sepsis. It all depends on the cause, the person and various other factors. Either way, not to be messed with!

My Dad died from it last April, spotted too late and he had a cardiac arrest and died of multi organ failure in ITU none of his family were with him as it happened so fast - we have been left devastated by his loss. I am now suing the NHS Trust in which he was treated as he was admitted 24 hours prior and discharged home without them following their own pathways.

Maybe try reading posts properly before telling posters to check their facts.

Sepsis in itself is not an infection. It is the result of your body going into overdrive in response to an infection. Lots of people think that sepsis is a standalone serious infection, which is why people generally don’t know enough about sepsis. Sepsis can develop following any infection.

@ChocHotolate was entirely correct, and still there are people falling over themselves to say that sepsis is a severe infection. It isn’t. It is of course severe, but it isn’t an infection.

I didn't say what it was or wasn't - only that it is severe.

Sepsis is a very sensitive topic for alot of people on this thread so yes, people have read it wrong but then again it was the "way" it was written.

The person is saying sepsis isn't an infection. They're not saying it isn't severe... and they're correct

Yes, but is is NOT a severe infection , sepsis is your body's over reaction to an infection.

But you were quite aggressive in your tone to @ChocHotolate who did not imply at all that it wasn't severe

My dad has had it twice. Both times as a result of a UTI, the last time was a year ago. He recovered well both times, will be 83 this year. He was lucky he recognised the symptom second time round, a and e staff wanted to send him home initially.

OP, I am guessing you are posting because you are worried about yourself or someone close.

As I understand it hospitals are now expected to follow a ‘sepsis pathway’ to reach early diagnosis and early administration of the right anti biotics.

If you are concerned, asking to have symptoms and treatment explained to you in terms of a sepsis pathway might help.

Don’t be afraid to speak up.

If sepsis has already been diagnosed, keep fingers crossed, as you can see many pp here have themselves recovered or had relatives recover.

Whatever is going on, I wish you well.

I don't know about the OP. Sounds more like a journalist or student wanting anecdotes.

I'm so sorry xx

I worked with someone who completely lost his sight due to sepsis. I hadn't known that was possible, very sad.

Similar with me - mastitis not responding to oral antibiotics. Sent up to the hospital, admitted and on IV antibiotics within 15 mins of arrival. They didn't mess around.

Killed my mum, that's a pretty severe level of infection.

@BloodyAdultDC no one has said it isn't severe, they're saying it isn't an infection (which is correct).

How are so many people misreading this post?!?

I had sepsis at 21 from a retained miscarriage. Not a lot of fun.

@BloodyAdultDC again... sepsis is NOT an infection. It is a body's response to infection but is not an infection in itself.

Something that is really clear from this thread is that there is a huge amount of educating to be done to help people understand sepsis. If the general public knew that when sepsis occurs it tends to follow on from an illness they already had (throat infection or infected wound for example) that context might help people spot the danger signs.

The need for better understanding of it and how it presents is something that applies to medics as well. We were sent home from hospital while DD had an infection that had gone into her bloodstream. I took her back the next day and feel bloody fortunate we got away with the delay in diagnosis and treatment.

'Just a virus' is wheeled out frequently in response to a child with a high temperature and lethargy. Of course 99/100 this is correct but there needs to be more awareness and listening to patients/parents to help distinguish between 'just a virus' and potentially life-threatening condition.

Ok I get it.

So it isn't an infection. Let's not underestimate the DEVASTATING effect it can have though - infection or not.

In my mum's case several medical professionals didn't add her symptoms together and she was not treated for sepsis until 18 hours after admission to an emergency oncology ward, where she absolutely should have been triaged as highest risk. If the professionals can't get it right we should make damn sure that everyone else is aware how dangerous it is and what the signs are.

The official definition when it literally comes to life or death is not to be quibbled over online.