When caregivers consult with an infectious disease physician early on in a sepsis patient's treatment, the patient's death risk can be reduced by up to 40 percent, according to a study published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases.
Researchers conducted the study at Montefiore Health System's Jack D. Weiler Hospital in New York City. The study included 248 emergency room patients with severe sepsis seen at the hospital in 2017-18.
Researchers found that the in-hospital death rate was 40 percent lower among patients with severe sepsis and septic shock whose care team consulted with an infectious disease specialist within 12 hours of their arrival to the ER.
Also, patients whose care teams consulted with an infectious disease specialist early were more likely to have antibiotic therapy stopped more quickly.
"It's very important to use antibiotics for the shortest amount of time that is appropriate in order to spare the patient potential negative effects of the medication," said Theresa Madaline, MD, lead study author, assistant professor at Medicine at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and healthcare epidemiologist at Montefiore. "That's really a crucial way infectious diseases consultation makes a difference."
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