September is Sepsis Awareness Month and the HSE is encouraging people to become aware of the signs and symptoms.
Over 15,000 cases of sepsis were diagnosed and treated in Ireland last year
Sepsis can hide behind any infection and can lead to a rapid deterioration in health.
Research has found that symptoms of sepsis are easy to dismiss, miss or mistake for something else.
Signs and symptoms of sepsis in adults (including maternity) are:
Slurred speech, new confusion, too sick to communicate, drowsiness.
Extreme shivering, muscle aches, fever. Has not passed urine in the last 12 hours and does not feel like passing urine.
Shortness of breath, lips tinged with blue, feels like your heart is racing, dizzy when you sit or stand.
I feel like I’m going to die.
Skin mottled and discoloured, new rash that is still visible when pressed on with a clear glass (glass test).
The signs and symptoms of sepsis in children are:
Very fast breathing
Fits or convulsions
Mottled skin (irregular colour) bluish or pale
A rash that does not fade when you press it
Unusually sleepy and difficult to wake
So if you suspect you or someone you know has sepsis, seek urgent medical care and always ask, �Could it be Sepsis?��
Pictured above at the Rochestown Park Hotel Cork last night as part of World Sepsis Day are Barrister ,Author and founder of Irish Sepsis Doireann O’ Mahony and former Irish soccer International Stepher Carr whose mother died from Sepsis
