Podcast #287: Sepsis Bundles

Author: Aaron Lessen, M.D.

Educational Pearls

• Treatment “bundles” are a popular approach to the rapid resuscitation of septic patients. A recent study in New York, where sepsis bundles are mandatory, sought to figure out which aspects of the bundle had impacts on mortality.
• In a study of 40,000 septic patients, the study found that early antibiotics were associated with better outcomes, while early IV fluids were not associated with better outcomes.
• This study affirms the important role of early antibiotics in sepsis. IV fluids may play an important role in the treatment of sepsis in some patients, but its role is less clear than antibiotics.

References:  Time to Treatment and Mortality during Mandated Emergency Care for Sepsis Christopher W. Seymour, M.D., Foster Gesten, M.D., Hallie C. Prescott, M.D., Marcus E. Friedrich, M.D., Theodore J. Iwashyna, M.D., Ph.D., Gary S. Phillips, M.A.S., Stanley Lemeshow, Ph.D., Tiffany Osborn, M.D., M.P.H., Kathleen M. Terry, Ph.D., and Mitchell M. Levy, M.D. N Engl J Med 2017; 376:2235-2244 June 8, 2017 DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa1703058