[End-organ damage in inflammation and sepsis]

Inflammatory components form part of the pathogenesis of infectious, but also non-infectious diseases. One of the most important revelations of the last decades was the finding of an activation of the natural immune response in numerous physiological and pathophysiological processes despite the absence of an infectious agent. Even physical exercise or psychical stress may evoke an inflammatory response. Substantial insight has been gained in the recent decades into the molecular mechanisms of cellular and organ dysfunction by the impact of mediators with inflammatory potential. Validated score systems allow a precise detection and quantification of organ dysfunctions in inflammation and sepsis. In contrast therapy of organ damage in severe septic and non-septic inflammatory processes presently is mainly still based on supportive therapeutic measures.