What is sepsis?

Q. My mother, who was in her 80s, recently died after a bout with pneumonia. When I received her death certificate, however, it listed her cause of death as sepsis. What does that mean?

A. Sepsis occurs when a germ releases dangerous substances or the immune system overreacts to the infection. In this case, your mother had pneumonia, a serious lung infection. Most likely, her immune system roared into action to fight it, but this overwhelming response went awry by progressing into septic shock. This is a dramatic drop in blood pressure that can damage the lungs, kidneys, liver, and other vital organs and lead to death. An estimated 1.7 million American adults develop sepsis each year, and 270,000 die, according to the CDC.

Like your mother, other older adults are more prone to sepsis. So are people who've recently had surgery or have a chronic illness, an artificial joint or other surgical device in their body, or a suppressed immune system due to illness or treatments. These folks should go to an emergency room if they develop symptoms including a fever, palpitations from an elevated heart rate, shortness of breath, and lightheadedness due to low blood pressure. Anyone else who develops these symptoms and has an infection — whether bacterial, viral, or fungal — should call their doctor or seek medical evaluation immediately as well.

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