Sepsis survival rates unequal after hospital discharge

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2025-02-28 00:01

New Zealand

Photo by Marcelo Leal on Unsplash

A NZ study shows that 16% of patients admitted to intensive care after developing sepsis died in hospital, and 13% died in the year after discharge. Researchers studied over 6000 ICU admissions for sepsis—organ damage caused by an immune system reaction to infection—acquired in the community across Aotearoa between 2009 and 2019. While there was no difference in survival rates while patients were in hospital, survival after discharge was lower for Māori and those from more deprived neighbourhoods, and higher for Asian and Pacific people. The study authors say we need strategies to prevent and treat sepsis that reduce ICU admissions, and to ensure equal chances of recovery in the long-term.

Media release

From: Pasifika Medical Association Group

In Aotearoa, many people are still dying after being admitted for critical care due to community-acquired sepsis, both in hospital (16.3%) and following discharge (12.9%). The link between the risk of dying following intensive care unit admission due to community-acquired sepsis and a person’s social and economic circumstances becomes pronounced in the first year after hospital discharge.

These findings suggest we need to focus on preventing community-acquired sepsis, treating it quickly and ensuring all patients have a fair chance at a good recovery—not just while they’re in the hospital, but in the longer term as well.

Journal/
conference: New Zealand Medical Journal

Organisation/s: University of Otago, Auckland City Hospital

Funder: This work was supported by the Health Research Council of New Zealand (HRC) through the REMAP- CAP Programme Grant. The HRC had no role in study design, data collection, analysis or preparation of the manuscript.

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