What is sepsis?

Sepsis is caused by the way the body responds to an infection. The infection can happen anywhere in the body. For example, a chest or urinary infection, or problems in the abdomen like burst ulcers, or even simple skin injuries like cuts and bites. Sepsis is sometimes called septicaemia or blood poisoning.

It is a life-threatening condition which makes the immune system go into overdrive as it tries to fight the infection. This can reduce the blood supply to vital organs such as the brain, heart, and kidneys, eventually leading to multiple organ failure and possibly death.

Signs and symptoms

Sepsis can be hard to spot. Anyone can develop sepsis but it is more common in young children, older people, and people whose immune systems don't work properly due to certain medicines or chronic illness. It can initially look like flu or a chest infection. Symptoms can appear different in babies and young children to those of adults and older children.

In adults and older children, look for:

• slurred speech, light-headedness, confusion, or dizziness
• extreme shivering or muscle pain
• difficulty passing urine or passing no urine over the past 24 hours
• severe breathlessness or rapid breathing
• they may say they feel sicker than they ever have before
• skin may become blue, grey or blotchy (on dark skin look at the palms of the hands and the base of the feet)
• a high temperature
• a rash that does not fade when pressed under a glass

The symptoms of sepsis vary and someone with sepsis may not have all of these. It can be especially difficult to spot in young children and people with communication difficulties, a disability, or dementia.

In babies and young children, look for:

• a temperature of more than 38C in a baby under 3 months, or more than 39C in a baby aged 3-6 months
• not feeding
• vomiting repeatedly
• passing no urine over the past 12 hours
• mottled, discoloured, blue, or pale skin
• a 'fit' or seizure
• severe breathlessness or breathing rapidly
• not responding or handling as they normally do
• lethargy and/or hard to wake
• feeling abnormally cold to the touch

They may not have all these symptoms.