The No. 1 Cause of Preventable Death

13th September is World Sepsis Day, which aims to shine a light on this devastating illness which is the number one cause of preventable death worldwide. A person dies of sepsis somewhere in the world every 2.8 seconds.

Sepsis is a life-threatening reaction to an infection which occurs when your immune system overreacts to an infection and starts to damage your body’s own tissues and organs. If left untreated, it can have devastating consequences and in spite of it being one of the most common illnesses in the developed world, it is still too often not recognised and treated soon enough.

In data published in January 2020 in the Global Burden of Disease Sepsis Report, 49 million people worldwide suffer sepsis every year and of these, 11 million die.

• Common symptoms of sepsis include:
• Fever and/or chills
• Difficulty breathing, breathlessness or breathing very fast
• Acting confused
• Low blood pressure
• Extreme pain
• Sweaty skin

For more information on symptoms of symptoms, treatment and recovery of sepsis visit www.nhs.uk/sepsis.

Symptoms of sepsis can be wrongly diagnosed as the flu or a viral infection which means that opportunities are missed to catch it and treat it early. Missing the opportunity to catch sepsis early can cause a worsening of the condition, extended pain and suffering, permanent disability and even death.

In the UK, around 40% of people who develop sepsis are estimated to experience physical cognitive, and/or psychological after effects. Some may only experience the effects for a few months but others can face a long recovery journey and develop Post Sepsis Syndrome (PSS). Please see more information on the symptoms and effects of sepsis on www.sepsistrust.org.

To show your support for World Sepsis Day, you can sign the World Sepsis Declaration, which is a call from worldwide action from the Global Sepsis Alliance. It sets out key targets to be achieved by 2030, which include in respect of infection prevention, infection management and urgent recognition and treatment of sepsis.

Our Clinical Negligence team at Williamsons are dedicated to supporting individuals who have endured life changing injuries or have lost loved ones due to misdiagnosis or delay in diagnosis of Sepsis.

If you or a loved one has been affected by sepsis, and you wish to discuss how we can help you, please contact our Clinical Negligence Department on 01482 323697.