NPR

Doctor Turns Up Possible Treatment For Deadly Sepsis

Research hasn't yet confirmed the early hints that a mix of IV vitamins and steroids might stop the fatal organ failure of sepsis. But an effective treatment for sepsis would be a really big deal.
Of the million or so Americans a year who get sepsis, roughly 300,000 die. Unfortunately, many treatments for the condition have looked promising in small, preliminary studies, only to fail in follow-up research.

It's hard not to get excited about news of a potentially effective treatment for sepsis, a condition that leads to multiple organ failure and kills more people in the hospital than any other disease.

But there have been so many false promises about this condition over the years, it's also wise to treat announcements — like one published online by the journal, Chest — with caution.

The study, from Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, Va., reported some remarkable success in treating patients who were at high risk of

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