Sepsis in silico: definition, development and application of an electronic phenotype for sepsis

Repurposing electronic health record (EHR) or electronic medical record (EMR) data holds significant promise for evidence-based epidemic intelligence and research. Key challenges include sepsis recognition by physicians and issues with EHR and EMR data. Recent advances in data-driven techniques, alongside initiatives like the Surviving Sepsis Campaign and the Severe Sepsis and Septic Shock Management Bundle (SEP-1), have improved sepsis definition, early detection, subtype characterization, prognostication and personalized treatment. This includes identifying potential biomarkers or digital signatures to enhance diagnosis, guide therapy and optimize clinical management. Machine learning applications play a crucial role in identifying biomarkers and digital signatures associated with sepsis and its sub-phenotypes. Additionally, electronic phenotyping, leveraging EHR and EMR data, has emerged as a valuable tool for evidence-based sepsis identification and management. This review examines methods for identifying sepsis cohorts, focusing on two main approaches: utilizing health administrative data with standardized diagnostic coding via the International Classification of Diseases and integrating clinical data. This overview provides a comprehensive analysis of current cohort identification and electronic phenotyping strategies for sepsis, highlighting their potential applications and challenges. The accuracy of an electronic phenotype or signature is pivotal for precision medicine, enabling a shift from subjective clinical descriptions to data-driven insights.