Supportive therapy of sepsis in children

Abstract

Despite the improvement of the understanding of the pathophysiology and treatment, in recent years, sepsis is the leading cause of death in children worldwide. Antibiotic therapy and hemodynamic support are the basis of treatment given to patients who survive circulatory failure and organ dysfunction. However, these patients may still suffer from many complications such as pulmonary embolism or stress ulcer. Although there is no clear evidence to quantify the importance of such complications on outcome, the anticipated impact is huge, having in mind the exhausted physiologic reserves of critically ill patients. Therefore, the critical patients who are being treated for severe sepsis in intensive care units, in addition to basic therapy, often also receive diverse forms of supportive therapy. This review summarizes the current evidence regarding the application of supportive therapy, which is included in international and domestic guidelines for the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of sepsis, severe sepsis and septic shock.