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Sepsis

Preventing organ failure in sepsis — the search continues

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In a recent trial, levosimendan therapy failed to ameliorate sepsis-induced organ dysfunction or improve the survival of patients with septic shock. The failure of levosimendan and many other potential therapies for sepsis, together with the findings of histopathologic studies, raise questions regarding the pathophysiologic basis of the disorder.

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Figure 1: Current theories of the pathophysiological mechanisms that underlie organ failure in sepsis.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anesthesiology, Washington University School of Medicine, Campus Box 8054, 660 South Euclid, St. Louis, 63110, Missouri, USA

    Thomas J. Graetz

  2. Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, and Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine, Campus Box 8054, 660 South Euclid, St. Louis, 63110, Missouri, USA

    Richard S. Hotchkiss

Authors
  1. Thomas J. Graetz
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  2. Richard S. Hotchkiss
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Correspondence to Richard S. Hotchkiss.

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Competing interests

R.S.H. has received grant support from Medimmune, Bristol-Myers Squibb, and GlaxoSmithKline. T.J.G. declares no competing interests.

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Graetz, T., Hotchkiss, R. Preventing organ failure in sepsis — the search continues. Nat Rev Nephrol 13, 5–6 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrneph.2016.171

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