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- Title
Relative tachycardia in patients with sepsis: an independent risk factor for mortality.
- Authors
L. Leibovici; A. Gafter-Gvili; M. Paul; N. Almanasreh; E. Tacconelli; S. Andreassen; A.D. Nielsen; U. Frank; R. Cauda; for the TREAT Study Group
- Abstract
Background: Excess activation of the sympathetic nervous system may be a risk factor for mortality in patients with the systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) or sepsis. Aim: To examine whether excessive tachycardia, relative to the degree of fever is an independent risk factor for death in patients with SIRS. Design: Prospective observational study. Setting: Departments of medicine in three university hospitals in Israel, Germany and Italy. Methods: We collected data for 3382 patients with SIRS, whether community- or hospital-acquired, 91% with sepsis, as part of an ongoing trial. Results: Overall 30-day mortality was 12% (408/3382). The pulse/temperature ratio was significantly higher in patients who died than in survivors: mean ± SD 2.55 ± 0.57 vs. 2.40 ± 0.48 bpm/°C (p Discussion: Our data are compatible with the hypothesis that some patients with sepsis experience an excess activation of the sympathetic nervous system, leading to a fatal outcome.
- Subjects
SYMPATHETIC nervous system; SEPSIS; DISEASE risk factors; NERVOUS system abnormalities
- Publication
QJM: An International Journal of Medicine, 2007, Vol 100, Issue 10, p629
- ISSN
1460-2725
- Publication type
Article