[Pediatric sepsis - new national recommendations for recognition and initial treatment]

A task force appointed by the Swedish Society of Pediatric Infectious Diseases developed national treatment recommendations for pediatric sepsis. It is limited to previously healthy children between 28 days (corrected) to 18 years of age and presented as a flow chart. Sepsis should be thought of as a life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated host response to infection. If the child is in shock, e.g. tachycardia with signs of decreased perfusion, sepsis treatment should be initiated immediately. If not in shock, but sepsis is very likely, sepsis treatment should be initiated as soon as possible. If the child is stable and sepsis is suspected, attempts should be made to revert symptoms not associated with the suspected primary infection and basic work-up performed. If no improvement is seen within three hours, sepsis treatment should be initiated. Sepsis treatment consists of fluids and antibiotics, sometimes with vasopressors, corticosteroids and/or immunomodulatory drugs.