Severe Sepsis — A New Treatment with Both Anticoagulant and Antiinflammatory Properties

Abstract

In the last half of the 20th century, the use of antibiotics for the treatment of bacterial infections transformed the practice of medicine, resulting in sharp reductions in morbidity and mortality from acute and chronic infections. However, mortality has remained high when an acute bacterial infection induces sepsis with shock, metabolic acidosis, oliguria, or hypoxemia. In fact, in the United States alone, there are at least 500,000 episodes of sepsis annually, and the resultant mortality rate ranges from 30 to 50 percent, even with intensive medical care, including antibiotics, intravenous fluids, nutrition, mechanical ventilation for respiratory failure, and surgery when . . .