How To Diagnose And Treat Sepsis

Antibiotics

Antibiotics also seem to be one of the first treatments for sepsis. However, patients may receive general antibiotics at first. This is because doctors may not know what bacteria or fungi caused their infection. Sepsis appears to be a medical emergency, which means general antibiotics should be better than nothing. They should allow doctors the time to conduct necessary tests. Like the fluids, antibiotics for sepsis seem to be given intravenously.

Doctors may use the time that general antibiotics provide to determine what caused the patient's infection. If they are able to do this, they may be able to prescribe a specific antibiotic. This antibiotic should be formulated to fight the specific type of bacteria or fungi that caused the infection. However, even if patients start feeling better midway through the course their doctor prescribed, they may still want to finish it. Not finishing a course of antibiotics may leave part of the infection behind, and may result in an antibiotic-resistant infection later.