Speaking of sepsis: semantics, syntax, and slang

Area of Science:

• Sepsis research
• Medical terminology
• Systems biology

Background:

• Medical language evolves, lacking rigid rules, impacting interdisciplinary fields like sepsis.
• Advances in systems biology, epidemiology, and understanding disease mechanisms drive sepsis research.
• COVID-19 and information technology offer new insights into sepsis management.

Purpose of the Study:

• Address the disconnect between clinical and laboratory sepsis terminology.
• Align clinical sepsis pathways with laboratory workflows for coherent patient management.
• Identify and eliminate obsolete terminology in sepsis diagnosis and treatment.

Main Methods:

• Literature review on sepsis terminology and clinical-laboratory alignment.
• Analysis of current sepsis diagnostic criteria and workflows.
• Conceptual framework development for unified sepsis epistemology and ontology.

Main Results:

• Divergent terminology between clinical and laboratory settings creates confusion in sepsis identification.
• Current practices lead to practical challenges in daily ward, clinic, and laboratory operations.
• A need exists for timely, actionable information and elimination of outdated terms.

Conclusions:

• A widely accepted sepsis epistemology, ontology, and heuristic is essential.
• Improved alignment of clinical and laboratory processes will enhance sepsis management.
• Standardized terminology and workflows are critical for timely and effective sepsis care.