Even months after being critical ill with sepsis, children are at risk for new or worsening medical conditions, suggests a study in JAMA Pediatrics. The researchers found that a fifth of children in a nationwide US cohort either developed or experienced progressing disease within six months of leaving the intensive care unit for sepsis.
Researchers compared data from 5150 children who received ICU care for sepsis to 96 361 who experienced critical illness from other conditions. Those with sepsis were more likely to later experience chronic respiratory failure, problems requiring nutritional dependence and chronic kidney disease. Both groups also had a risk of developing a seizure disorder.
“Children who survive severe sepsis are at risk of long-term health consequences that impact their quality of life and future health needs,” said lead author Erin Carlton, MD, MSc, a paediatric intensivist at University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital.
Not all children who recover from critical illness from sepsis are impacted equally, the study suggests. Those with pre-existing illnesses were three times more likely to experience new or worsening disease.
Meanwhile, younger children, especially under twelve months old, were twice as likely to require supplemental nutrition, such as needing a feeding tube, or develop a new seizure condition such as epilepsy, than older children.
Sepsis, where an out-of-control immune response to infection damages vital organs, is a leading cause of death among children and newborns. In the US, 70 000 children in the are hospitalised with sepsis annually.
“Many children who require critical care for sepsis have debilitating physical, cognitive or emotional challenges long after recovery,” Dr Carlton said. “Our findings suggest a need for improved follow up care focused on identifying and treating new or worsening medical conditions.”
