{"id":1934,"date":"2018-07-14T08:35:18","date_gmt":"2018-07-14T08:35:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/simplyhealth.io\/?p=1934"},"modified":"2021-05-18T16:19:59","modified_gmt":"2021-05-18T16:19:59","slug":"14-alarming-sepsis-symptoms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/simplyhealth.io\/14-alarming-sepsis-symptoms\/","title":{"rendered":"14 Alarming Sepsis Symptoms"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Infections happen when unwelcomed germs and microorganisms enter our body and start causing harm. Some of these microorganisms include viruses and bacteria, and there are different breeds and strands of bacteria causing a wide variety of conditions, affecting any organ in our system and sometimes threatening our life. Our body has a system that is specifically design to fight and hopefully defeat all these infections, called the immune system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If things work as they should, our white cells and other active components of the immune function will find, inactivate and destroy the microorganisms that are causing us harm. However, when the infection is too severe or the immune system isn\u2019t ready to fight it, a high quantity of chemicals will be released into the body that could trigger inflammatory responses in the tissue of different organs. This phenomenon is known as sepsis and could potentially lead a patient to their death.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Fever<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The initial symptom of sepsis is a febrile reaction. Fever <\/a>that is caused by sepsis is often high, well above 38 degrees Celsius. When the generalized inflammation of the tissues commences, the body normally reacts by rising its temperature as a febrile response. The purpose of fever in the organism is to create an environment for bacteria when they cannot survive and as a result it helps the immune system defeat them and eliminate them from our bodies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The challenge with fever as a symptom of sepsis is that when sepsis is originated by the presence of bacteria in the body, there is a high chance that the organism had already had a febrile response to begin with, so it is difficult to tell fever caused by sepsis apart from fever that is originally caused by the infection in the first place. A sudden rise in temperature could be an indicator.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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2. Low blood pressure<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Fever is the most common and first to appear sign of sepsis, but the main disadvantage of a febrile response as an indicator of sepsis is that it is a non-specific response, since many other conditions, including the infection <\/a>itself, could be causing the fever. It is easier and safer to diagnose sepsis based in symptoms that are more specific, or at least are less often associated with high body temperature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Consequently, the association of fever and other usually non-related symptoms, will make it easier for your doctor to realize that your body is being overtaken by sepsis. One of the symptoms that is associated with sepsis is low blood pressure, which is one of the reasons sepsis must me immediately treated with abundant fluids. When sepsis gets worse, a phenomenon called septic shock could occur, and its main sign is a sudden and abrupt descent of blood pressure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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3. Abnormal function of the heart<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Our heart is arguably one of the most important muscles in our system. It pumps blood between sixty to eighty times per minute, making sure our blood flows throughout our system, taking substances where they have to be. Blood carries all nutrients, oxygen, carbon dioxide<\/a>, living cells, microorganisms, toxins and all elements that need to go from one place to another, as well as extraneous elements like drugs and germs. If the heart doesn\u2019t work properly, the whole system will be negatively affected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the case of people with sepsis, the alterations in the circulatory system and the inflammation of organs could cause the heart to work abnormally. The most frequent heart pumping abnormality associated with sepsis is known as tachycardia, and is often perceived by the patient as the heart racing or pumping too fast inside their chest. A heartbeat over 90 beats per minute is typical of sepsis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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4. Low platelet count<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Platelets <\/a>are small cells that are present in our bloodstream and fulfill a very important function to keep us alive. They are among the main elements responsible of a process called coagulation, which helps protect our circulatory system from the damage of physical wounds. When our tissues are broken due to injury or any other physical tearing, the blood vessels could break too and the blood will escape, flowing out of our system. Coagulation is a reaction that prevents us from bleeding out by stopping hemorrhages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Platelets gather around the breakage and stick to each other with threads of proteins forming a blood clot. This clot blocks the flow of blood and keeps it inside our system. Certain conditions such as sepsis may lower our platelet count, which is quite dangerous for us because our body isn\u2019t as ready as it should to stop hemorrhages in case that we become hurt or injured.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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5. Shortness of breath<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Our breathing pattern and rate can also be affected by sepsis. The rate and depth of our breath is controlled by a series of muscles in our torso, including our diaphragm and our intercostal muscles, among many others. The relaxation of these muscles causes our lungs to expand, and as a result the air comes in through our nose and\/or mouth. When we inhale, the oxygen <\/a>that is contained in the air that we breathe goes through the lining of the lungs and right into our bloodstream.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The level of oxygen in our blood is controlled by an autonomous system in our brain stem. If there is not enough oxygen in our blood, this system will make us breathe faster in order to compensate for the lack of oxygen. People with sepsis tend to breathe faster than usual, more than twenty times per minute, and often feel difficulty breathing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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6. Abnormally low blood temperature<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Our body temperature <\/a>needs to be in a quite tight range of about 37 degrees Celsius so our functions can be performed properly and there is no health problem related to an incorrect body temperature. Fever, which has been listed on top of this article as the main symptom of sepsis, is an alteration of regular body temperature, but it is not the only alteration of body temperature that has been associated with sepsis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a matter of fact, in some cases fever is just the initial reaction of the body to a case of sepsis. It has been observed that some patients that have been diagnosed with sepsis actually have the opposite case of body temperature dysregulation. A drop on body temperature below 36 degrees Celsius is known as hypothermia. Hypothermic patients cannot regulate their own temperature and need to warm up with blankets and mild sources of heat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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7. Chills<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In the case of sepsis, chills <\/a>could originate in more than one symptom that has been listed above. In other words, chills are a symptom of secondary order, which means that they are a consequence of another sepsis symptom that comes prior. For example, a descent in blood pressure may cause chills and shaking, especially of the lower half of the body. Another possible cause of chills is fever, especially if it becomes too high, which is typical of cases of sepsis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A third possible cause for chills is hypothermia, or the abnormal descent of body temperature. As an automatic mechanism that is meant to reset the homeostasis of the organism, muscles start shaking involuntarily because when they do they consume energy and the metabolic reaction that takes place when that happens emits heat as a subproduct. In other words, muscular chills can help restore the body temperature by making it warmer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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8. Fainting<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Loss of consciousness is a symptom that is associated with moderate to severe cases of sepsis<\/a>. There are many potential reasons for losing your consciousness if your body is experiencing sepsis, and most of them have to do with the effects sepsis has on your homeostasis and the functions of your brain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sepsis can heavily alter the dynamics of your body, from your blood flow to your fluid dynamics to your body temperature among many others, and if the imbalance is too extreme, your brain could decide to shut off to reduce the demand of fluids and glucose that are becoming scarce in your organism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A particular cause of fainting in sepsis is what is known as septic shock, which happens in more advanced cases of sepsis. This sudden fainting is caused by an abrupt descent in blood pressure, which affects the irrigation of the brain and could cause a loss of consciousness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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9. Psychiatric affectations<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The brain is a very delicate organ with specific needs for glucose<\/a>, fluids and oxygen. If the organism is altered by a generalized condition such as sepsis, these demands could be not properly met, and as a result, the way our brain functions could be severely altered. Sepsis can cause important and abrupt changes in mental status, because the communication of neurons and other nervous cells is sensitive to the chemical and fluid environment in which they are functioning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some of the most common intellectual and psychiatric changes caused by sepsis are mental confusion, mind fog, a sudden descent in mental ability, and a reduction in the level of consciousness. This last symptom is sometimes made worse by another symptom we will discuss farther below, which is sleepiness, because it lowers the mental clarity and state of wake even further, making it more difficult for the patient to think clearly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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10. Pain<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Sepsis is a generalized condition that affects many parts of the body. At the same time, pain is a generalized sensation that informs our consciousness that something isn\u2019t quite right with our bodies. Pain is a common symptom in many conditions, and sepsis is not an exception for that. What is important about sepsis is that it is a non-specific condition that spreads throughout the body and affects tissues and organs in many places of our organism at once.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For this reason, the pain that we feel during sepsis can happen in different parts of our anatomy, although the most frequent place is the abdomen, since here is where most of our inner organs are located. The organs and other tissues develop an inflammation caused by the toxic chemicals <\/a>released during sepsis, and as a result, we feel pain in all tissues affected by this condition, especially the abdomen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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11. Jaundice<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

This is a more specific sign of organ failure, just as palpitations and tachycardia could be a sign of the beginning of tissue failure in our hearts. Jaundice <\/a>as a symptom can be observed by a noticeable yellowing of the surface of the skin, especially the white of the eyes, which can become bright yellow in the most severe cases. Descriptively, jaundice is caused by an excess of bile in our bloodstream, which is a substance of a characteristic yellow tone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When bile travels around our body, it can deposit itself in our more superficial tissues, giving them the characteristic yellow tone of jaundice. Bile is a fluid stored in the gallbladder and is used to help the digestion of food. If organs such as the gallbladder and the liver are failing, bile could flow to the bloodstream and increase its concentration in other tissues of the body, causing jaundice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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12. Important decrease of urination or no urine at all<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Sepsis is a serious condition that requires medical assistance and a hospital admittance, and one of the reasons for that Is the way it impacts the fluid dynamics of our organism. When people have sepsis, it is very common for them not to urinate, or to urinate a very small amount every day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fluid dynamic in their body is severely affected, and the prescribed treatment <\/a>for sepsis always involved the administration of a large volume of fluids through an IV, or intravenous line. Fluids help eliminate the toxic substances and the infectious microorganisms that are saturating the body, but the fluid retention that is typical of sepsis can have a terrible impact in the overall health of the patient. The descent of the total amount of urine eliminated by the body is often a sign of alarm for the doctors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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13. Patches of white or discolored skin<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The color of our skin is determined by the amount of a certain protein called melanin<\/a>, which has a characteristic dark tone. The more melanin that we have in our skin, the darker our skin will be. The purpose of melanin is to protect our deeper tissues from the effect of the harmful radiation of the sun, and this is the reason why our skin turns darker after sunbathing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are some conditions that can alter the color of our skin by changing the amount of melanin present in our dermis or skin tissue. Specific conditions like vitiligo are known to destroy melanin, thus creating white or light patches on our skin that eventually spread and cover our entire bodies. Sepsis might also affect the color of our skin, inducing the formation of patches with less melanin, thus causing an irregular discoloration of the surface of our body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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14. Weakness and sleepiness<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The whole process of a septic episode is extremely draining for the system. It consumes a lot of energy just to fight an infection, but if that fight evolves into a sepsis, then the consumption of energy can get even worse. Not only is it exhausting for the organism to fight the microorganisms and the toxic substances that are flowing freely throughout our body, but also, many of the symptoms can cause a state of extreme weakness <\/a>and tiredness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The way our muscles and other tissues are affected by these chemicals render them weakened and make it more difficult for us to perform any physical activity, however mild the effort could be. Also, dropped blood pressure might cause sleepiness and light-headedness, and the state of confusion that sepsis induces in the brain can also make you feel like you can\u2019t stay awake and you need to sleep.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\r\n

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