Method to find heart patients in sepsis risk

SCIENTISTS HAVE created a simple way of identifying heart failure patients who are at greatest risk of dying from sepsis.

Nearly one in four deaths in patients with heart failure are caused by sepsis, but researchers at the University of Leeds said they have found a test that could identify patients who are most at risk. They found several distinct markers which flagged higher risk of death from sepsis – sometimes called blood poisoning – specifically, rather than progressively worsening heart failure or sudden cardiac arrest.

Blood samples from high-risk patients contained lower levels of vitamin D and higher counts of platelets – cells which help blood clot. Those at high risk were also older, more likely to have chronic lung disease and more likely to be male. Researchers then used this data to create a “risk profile”, which could be used to flag those patients at highest risk of dying from sepsis.

They suggested the test could become part of a routine check when patients visit their doctor after being diagnosed with heart failure, which could be years before their risk of developing sepsis actually occurs.

Lead author Professor Richard Cubbon, from the University of Leeds, said: “We have created a simple way to identify people with heart failure who are at greatest risk of dying from sepsis. It could be part of a routine check which is already performed when they visit their doctors.

“With our risk profile, we hope people at high risk of sepsis will receive better monitoring, and infections which could lead to sepsis are treated early.”