Be Aware of Sepsis

Good post luzdoh

I’m always shocked and dismayed that so few people are aware that in the UK alone, sepsis is responsible for 44,000 deaths every year, more than bowel, breast and prostate cancer combined. That’s 120 people every day.

Despite this, a recent survey found that 44% of people in the UK have never heard of sepsis and have little idea that it is a life-threatening emergency.

If this many were killed on the road can you imagine the outcry, but I bet not many people will react to this thread.

I'm so glad you posted this, luzdoh. Sepsis is a terrible illness and so many people are not aware of the symptoms.
I think it used to be known as Septicemia, blood poisoning. But we now realise that it can easily spread to the major organs of the body and cause them to break down, resulting often in death. And yet the irony is that, if caught early, it is easily cured. So recognising the symptoms is vital. Discoloured skin; lack of urination; breathing problems; chilly from drop in temperature.
Flu-like feelings. There is plenty of information online.

in the UK alone, sepsis is responsible for 44,000 deaths every year, more than bowel, breast and prostate cancer combined.

That's a very alarming fact.

My DH got this a couple of years ago while he was in hospital having had a prostate op which had gone fine and he was getting better. Then one afternoon he said to me he didn’t feel too good and was very hot - as we were in the middle of a heatwave we were not overly concerned but the next day when I went visiting they were rigging him up with intravenous antibiotics and breathing apparatus. The following morning he was taken by ambulance to a hospital about and hour away where the ICT dept was good. Worryingly here it is called - Reanimation - he was there for six days and had a nurse with him the whole time. He was given specific antibiotics. He spent another week or so back in the more local hospital before coming home.
He lost almost two stone in weight and was very weak. The GP told him he only survived because he was a strong man who was well nourished. It took him a couple of months to be back to normal.
When we got all the blood test results we found that his was caused by E. coli which it seems can live in the gut and pop out to bite you when you are low.
The cost for the six days in ICT was €12K - we did not have to pay this as we have the insurance and for many life threatening conditions the French Health system pays anyway but it does show you the cost. We get accounts for our visits to the doctor and medication etc so we can see how much things are.

And it is a fact FarNorth

Welshwife your DH was very lucky. That must have been terrifying for you both. What many people don’t realise is it can cause terrible disfiguration such as loss of limbs and facial features like noses and lips.

It’s a very scary illness, my DDs FIL died from Sepsis 10 years ago and a very dear friend of my mothers died not so long ago, they both had chest infections after the Flu, they weren’t elderly or infirm, but thought it was just something that would get better with Paracetomol.

By the time the families had realised what was wrong it was too late, DMs friend died within 24 hours, but my DDs FIL was alive for about 6 weeks in Intensive Care and it was absolutely awful.

TBH the chance of getting to the Dotors in time to catch this is slim, hence the high death rate.

Sepsis is a terrible thing, a young mum in my street contracted it after childbirth. Thankfully the hospital diagnosed it quickly, and she fully recovered. But it was a terribly frightening time for a family who should have been celebrating the birth of a new baby. Instead they were forced to consider a future where the poor babe wouldn’t have a mother. All is well that ends well, but it is so important to be aware.

My DD was recently in hospital for 3 days getting intravenous antibiotics as one arm was hugely swollen and painful.

She tells me, which I hadn't realised, that this could have been sepsis and she could have needed emergency surgery.
That surgery may have meant her losing her arm!

Luckily, the antibiotics took effect quickly.

I had a terrible scare 2 years ago. It started after I had a lump removed from my thigh. All seemed to go well until the wound and the stitches went very hot and beetroot red. I posted on Gransnet that I was concerned and didn’t feel very well . The sensible GNetters told me in no uncertain terms to GET TO HOSPITAL ! Which I did ( well a primary care centre anyway ) the stitches were removed quickly ( I’ve never known such pain as by now they were kind of embedded) the wound was reopened, cleaned and I was out on strong antibiotics. The doctor warned me about sepsis . I didn’t have a clue .

We had an extremely scary experience last November when my son in law contracted what he thought was flu. On the Wednesday afternoon he was shivering, muscles aching and feeling generally very unwell. By Friday he was in extreme pain and almost immobile so over the weekend my daughter who was 5 months pregnant at the time took him to Out of hours and he was admitted to hospital where they diagnosed him with pneumonia, stapphyloccus aureas blood infection, endocarditis (infection of the heart valve) and sepsis. He was bed bound and in critical care for a few weeks and then gradually recovered. He also contracted a secondary infection which affected his nervous system but we honestly thought he was going to die, every day there was more and more bad news. Gradually though as he was a very fit 32 year old he gradually recovered and is almost back to strength now. At one point though I thought my daughter would be left a widow, pregnant with a 2 year old. Luckily he was released from hospital on Christmas eve and they are now looking forward to the birth of their second daughter next month.

Moral is just because it seems like flu, does not mean it is. If in any doubt and if it seems to be getting worse get it checked out.

The trouble is that so many of us try not to take up any of the doctors time with just a cold or flu - it is hard to know what to do. DH was lucky in that he was in hospital and being monitored. The action around his bed when I went in was frightening. That was actually worse than when he was in the ICT - that was very calm and quiet.

Welshwife

The trouble is that so many of us try not to take up any of the doctors time with just a cold or flu - it is hard to know what to do.

This is exactly right. My daughter wanted to call the doctor on Friday, two days after my son in law got ill but the advice is with flu that there is nothing the doctor can do and you don't want to risk infecting others. The problem comes though if it is not flu and none of us are doctors so self diagnosis can be dangerous. More education on sepsis and how dangerous it is and the usual symptoms is essential. We would never have thought our son in law had it though, as never really heard of anyone contracting it. It is surprisingly common though.

Thanks for posting this. DH has a sore big toe which he thinks is infected so I will monitor him. Sounds silly but who knows.

It is hard to know with flu whether to bother the GP as we are told not to. However, I did go to the GP this year as I am asthmatic and over 65 and they agreed I was right to get medication for this.
I do worry about sepsis as I am prone to cellulitis frpm insect bites.

It is a shocking condition, made worse by the speed of deterioration.

It's currently featuring in The Archers, where a young mum in her thirties has recently died because of it.

My partner got sepsis while in hospital having treatment for a urine and prostate infection, luckily he was in the right place to be treated quickly.
Now being treated for prostate cancer
Another friends husband also contracted sepsis while in hospital after a bowel operation

I was wondering about this after all the awful stories I've heard lately. If you just get a small cut, normally I'd ignore that. Is there anything you can clean a wound with, that will prevent sepsis at an early stage? Dettol?

Ooh my neighbour got it and nearly died. She is home but very poorly. All the antibiotics have left her with a gut problem which needs more antibiotics but well that is the trouble one thing leads to another.

One of the problems in recognizing this is that there may not be a raised temperature as the person may be in septic shock. This makes one think there is not much wrong. Be warned.

I swear by TCP and use it on all cuts . Not sure if it would completely prevent something from becoming infected though . I’m not sure how my wound became infected . I kept it very clean ( obviously not clean enough though) .

I gave DH lots of biotic yoghurts when he came home to assist with the gut bacteria. He was very weak too and he also had a bit of trouble with his blood pressure plummeting when he stood up - he just collapsed down onto the ground the first time it happened - after that he was very careful not to move quickly.

Weishwife so glad your DH is on the mend. I read the part of your post which said about recieving an account of the cost of medical treatment from your GP etc.This might be a good idea for the NHS to do.It may shock some people who constantly go to the gp for the slightest thing which maybe the pharmasist could advise on. I know several people like this who go nearly every week to their surgery for one thing or another. If they saw the cost involved it may make them think twice and really appreciate the service we have in the UK.

travelsafar I actually thought this was supposed to happen at one time. Perhaps it was scrapped because of the admin costs to GP surgeries.

I too know serial offenders who think it’s a weekly outing. Silly things like constipation and coughs, general aches and pains.

A friend of a friend died of sepsis in hospital a few days after a minor operation. She had fought bowel cancer several years before but it was sepsis that ended her life.