Everyone knows names of big killers like cancer, heart disease and stroke, but few people are aware of one of biggest killers - sepsis. Sepsis is life-threatening condition. Doctors say it is responsible for one in five deaths worldwide. Sepsis happens when our body's response to infection injures our own organs. Our body normally releases chemicals into blood to fight infection. Sepsis occurs when body releases too many of these chemicals. chemicals overload our organs and damage them. This damage can lead to organ failure and death. Doctors have traditionally called this blood poisoning. More than half of sepsis cases reported worldwide occur in children, many of whom are newborn babies.
study into sepsis was published on January the 16th in medical journal "The Lancet". Researchers estimated that over 50 million people year develop sepsis and over 20 per cent die from the illness. This is more than double percentage previously estimated. The researchers said sepsis kills more people than cancer. Professor Mohsen Naghavi, senior author of research, said: "We are alarmed to find sepsis deaths are much higher than previously estimated, especially as condition is both preventable and treatable." He said more research is needed to stop sepsis killing newborns. Doctors can treat sepsis with antibiotics if condition is found early.
