Sepsis Health Center

Common symptoms of sepsis are fever, chills, rapid breathing and heart rate, rash, confusion and disorientation. Many of these symptoms, such as fever and difficulty breathing, mimic other conditions, making sepsis hard to diagnose in its early stages.

To be diagnosed with sepsis, you must exhibit at least two of the following symptoms:

  • Fever above 101.3 F (38.5 C) or below 95 F (35 C)
  • Heart rate higher than 90 beats a minute
  • Respiratory rate higher than 20 breaths a minute
  • Probable or confirmed infection

Severe sepsis

Your diagnosis will be upgraded to severe sepsis if you also exhibit at least one of the following signs and symptoms, which indicate organ dysfunction:

  • Areas of mottled skin
  • Significantly decreased urine output
  • Abrupt change in mental status
  • Decrease in platelet count
  • Difficulty breathing
  • Abnormal heart function
  • Septic shock

To be diagnosed with septic shock, you must have the signs and symptoms of severe sepsis — plus extremely low blood pressure.

Review Date: 
April 19, 2012
Last Updated:
June 28, 2013
Source:
dailyrx.com