There are high mortality rates of around 50%-60% in elderly patients with severe sepsis and septic shock[4,9,73]. The mortality due to severe sepsis in elderly patients is 1.3-1.5 times higher than that in younger cohorts[4,9]. Several studies have found age to be an independent predictor of mortality[4,5,8,9].
When treatment or medical intervention is missing, sepsis is a leading cause of death, more significant than breast cancer, lung cancer, or heart attack. Research shows that the condition can kill an affected person in as little as 12 hours.
Sepsis is a very serious illness for anyone at any age, but it can be particularly devastating for seniors. Older severe sepsis survivors are more than three times more likely to see a drop in cognitive (mental) abilities that can make it impossible for them to return to their previous living arrangements.
On average, the recovery period from this condition takes about three to ten days, depending on the appropriate treatment response, including medication.
In fact, one study of hospital discharge records found sepsis was nearly eight times more common among the elderly. For older adults, the most common causes of sepsis are respiratory, genitourinary, or bloodstream infections.
Most people make a full recovery from sepsis. But it can take time. You might continue to have physical and emotional symptoms. These can last for months, or even years, after you had sepsis.
The major cause of death in the 55-64 age group is cancer followed by heart disease and injury. In the 75+ age group, the leading cause shifts to heart disease, and injury drops below Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), cerebrovascular diseases, and pneumonia.
Healthcare professionals should treat sepsis with antibiotics as soon as possible. Antibiotics are critical tools for treating life-threatening infections, like those that can lead to sepsis.
Septic shock: Septic shock is the last stage of sepsis and is defined by extremely low blood pressure, despite lots of IV (intravenous) fluids.
The average sepsis-related length of stay during the baseline data collection period was 3.35 days, and the baseline sepsis-related 30-day readmission rate was 188/407 (46.19%).
There are high mortality rates of around 50%-60% in elderly patients with severe sepsis and septic shock[4,9,73]. The mortality due to severe sepsis in elderly patients is 1.3-1.5 times higher than that in younger cohorts[4,9].
Sepsis occurs unpredictably and can progress rapidly. In severe cases, one or more organ systems fail. In the worst cases, blood pressure drops, the heart weakens, and the patient spirals toward septic shock. Once this happens, multiple organs—lungs, kidneys, liver—may quickly fail, and the patient can die.
Urinary tract infection is the most common cause of sepsis in the elderly and responds best to antibiotic therapy. Pneumonia is the next most common cause and leads to the highest mortality in this age group; rapid (sometimes invasive) methods must be utilized to identify the etiologic agent.
Sepsis is a life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated host response to infection (3). If not recognized early and managed promptly, it can lead to septic shock, multiple organ failure and death.
It's known that many patients die in the months and years after sepsis. But no one has known if this increased risk of death (in the 30 days to 2 years after sepsis) is because of sepsis itself, or because of the pre-existing health conditions the patient had before acquiring the complication.
Older adults with sepsis often present with atypical, nonspecific symptoms. The most common example is the presence of altered mental status, which is a nonspecific marker of infection in older patients and does not necessarily indicate a nervous system infection as it would in younger adults.
Many people who survive sepsis recover completely and their lives return to normal. However, as with some other illnesses requiring intensive medical care, some patients have long-term effects.
Regardless of the cause, the pain can be severe and many survivors say it was the worst pain they had ever felt. Severe abdominal pain may also cause nausea and vomiting, which can in turn increase the pain and cause dehydration if you're not able to replace lost fluids.
The mortality rate of SIRS ranges from 6% to 7% and in septic shock amounts to over 50%. In particular, abdominal sepsis exhibits the highest mortality rate with 72%. The long-term prognosis is equally poor; only approximately 30% survived the first year after hospital admission.
Examples include ceftriaxone (Rocephin), piperacillin-tazobactam, cefepime (Maxipime), ceftazidime (Fortaz), vancomycin (Firvanq), ciprofloxacin (Cipro), and levofloxacin (Levaquin). If you have mild sepsis, you may receive a prescription for antibiotics to take at home.
Sepsis is treatable if it's identified and treated quickly. In most cases it leads to full recovery with no lasting problems.
Early death, also called premature death, occurs earlier than the average age of death in a population. In the United States, that age is around 75 years old. A lot of illness can happen in the first 74 years of life, yet the majority of early deaths have just a handful of causes.
The average age of death in the US was 73.7 years old, a decrease of less than 1% from 2019's age of 73.8 years. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
#1: Heart Disease
The top cause of death has not changed.