[Anticytokine therapy in sepsis and why it fails]

Anticytokine therapy in sepsis belongs to a subgroup of therapeutic interventions referred to as antiinflammatory or immunomodulatory strategies in the intensive care literature. Between the mid-1980s and the late 1990s, this approach was considered very promising. Against all expectations, it proved ineffective or even harmful in many cases. However, the recent literature is suggestive of a renewed interest in the topic. Therefore, we attempted at a retrospective search for causes of the failure.