title: Inpatient care for septicemia or sepsis: a challenge for patients and hospitals.
abstract: Septicemia and sepsis are serious bloodstream infections that can rapidly become life-threatening. They arise from various infections, including those of the skin, lungs, abdomen, and urinary tract. Patients with these conditions are often treated in a hospital’s intensive care unit. Early aggressive treatment increases the chance of survival. In 2008, an estimated $14.6 billion was spent on hospitalizations for septicemia, and from 1997 through 2008, the inflation-adjusted aggregate costs for treating patients hospitalized for this condition increased on average annually by 11.9%. Despite high treatment expenditures, septicemia and sepsis are often fatal. Those who survive severe sepsis are more likely to have permanent organ damage, cognitive impairment, and physical disability. Septicemia is a leading cause of death. The purpose of this report is to describe the most recent trends in care for hospital inpatients with these diagnoses.
authors.affiliation: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center for Health Statistics 3311 Toledo Road, Hyattsville, Maryland 20782, USA.
authors.forename: Margaret Jean
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Hall
authors.forename: Sonja N
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: Carol J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: DeFrances
authors.forename: Aleksandr
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Golosinskiy
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D017052:Hospital Mortality / Q000639:trends*; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007297:Inpatients / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010351:Patient Discharge / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D010360:Patient Transfer / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D018805:Sepsis / Q000191:economics / Q000401:mortality*; D012737:Sex Factors; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology