title: Are there new approaches for diagnosis, therapy guidance and outcome prediction of sepsis?
abstract: Beside many efforts to improve outcome, sepsis is still one of the most frequent causes of death in critically ill patients. It is the most common condition with high mortality in intensive care units. The complexity of the septic syndrome comprises immunological aspects - i.e., sepsis induced immunosuppression - but is not restricted to this fact in modern concepts. So far, exact mechanisms and variables determining outcome and mortality stay unclear. Since there is no typical risk profile, early diagnosis and risk stratification remain difficult, which hinders rapid and effective treatment initiation. Due to the heterogeneous nature of sepsis, potential therapy options should be adapted to the individual. Biomarkers like C-reactive protein and procalcitonin are routinely used as complementary tools in clinical decision-making. Beyond the acute phase proteins, a wide bunch of promising substances and non-laboratory tools with potential diagnostic and prognostic value is under intensive investigation. So far, clinical decision just based on biomarker assessment is not yet feasible. However, biomarkers should be considered as a complementary approach.
authors.affiliation: Dubravka Kojic, Benedikt H Siegler, Florian Uhle, Christoph Lichtenstern, Markus A Weigand, Stefan Hofer, Thorsten Brenner, Department of Anesthesiology, Heidelberg University Hospital, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Dubravka
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kojic
authors.affiliation: Dubravka Kojic, Benedikt H Siegler, Florian Uhle, Christoph Lichtenstern, Markus A Weigand, Stefan Hofer, Thorsten Brenner, Department of Anesthesiology, Heidelberg University Hospital, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Benedikt H
authors.initials: BH
authors.lastname: Siegler
authors.affiliation: Dubravka Kojic, Benedikt H Siegler, Florian Uhle, Christoph Lichtenstern, Markus A Weigand, Stefan Hofer, Thorsten Brenner, Department of Anesthesiology, Heidelberg University Hospital, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Florian
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Uhle
authors.affiliation: Dubravka Kojic, Benedikt H Siegler, Florian Uhle, Christoph Lichtenstern, Markus A Weigand, Stefan Hofer, Thorsten Brenner, Department of Anesthesiology, Heidelberg University Hospital, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Christoph
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lichtenstern
authors.affiliation: Dubravka Kojic, Benedikt H Siegler, Florian Uhle, Christoph Lichtenstern, Markus A Weigand, Stefan Hofer, Thorsten Brenner, Department of Anesthesiology, Heidelberg University Hospital, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Peter P
authors.initials: PP
authors.lastname: Nawroth
authors.affiliation: Dubravka Kojic, Benedikt H Siegler, Florian Uhle, Christoph Lichtenstern, Markus A Weigand, Stefan Hofer, Thorsten Brenner, Department of Anesthesiology, Heidelberg University Hospital, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Markus A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Weigand
authors.affiliation: Dubravka Kojic, Benedikt H Siegler, Florian Uhle, Christoph Lichtenstern, Markus A Weigand, Stefan Hofer, Thorsten Brenner, Department of Anesthesiology, Heidelberg University Hospital, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hofer
authors.affiliation: Dubravka Kojic, Benedikt H Siegler, Florian Uhle, Christoph Lichtenstern, Markus A Weigand, Stefan Hofer, Thorsten Brenner, Department of Anesthesiology, Heidelberg University Hospital, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Thorsten
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Brenner
keywords: Biomarkers; Clinical decision-making; Early prediction; Sepsis and mortality