Sepsis

Tim Lillard at the home he and his late wife, Ann Picha-Lillard, shared in suburban southeast Michigan. Since her death in 2022, Lillard has made it his mission to pass the Safe Patient Care Act, which would create mandatory nurse-to-patient ratios in Michigan hospitals. Beth Weiler/Michigan Public hide caption

Sepsis, which is sometimes called blood poisoning, is essentially the body's overreaction to an infection. Kateryna Kon/Science Source hide caption

Health care workers assist a COVID-19 patient in Spain. Some evidence from Europe and China suggests an overzealous immune response may be contributing to the severe illness in some patients. Felipe Dana/AP hide caption

Sepsis arises when the body overreacts to an infection, and blood vessels throughout the body become leaky. Researchers now estimate that about 11 million people worldwide died with sepsis in 2017 alone — that's about 20% of all deaths. Medic Image/Universal Images Gr/Getty Images hide caption

Bacteria (purple) in the bloodstream can trigger sepsis, a life-threatening illness. Steve Gschmeissner/ScienceSource hide caption

Shauna Pelfrey talks to her husband, Dorian, while preparing for his dialysis appointment. Lynsey Weatherspoon for NPR hide caption

Randy and Karen O'Burke together at their son's home in Hendersonville, Tenn., last week. "Apparently, I'm pretty much of a miracle," Randy says. Morgan Hornsby for NPR hide caption

Without including a "control group" of sepsis patients who get the usual mix of drugs and fluids, even a big study comparing two other experimental approaches won't deliver helpful answers, critics say. Portra Images/Getty Images hide caption

Dr. Paul Marik (left) discusses patient care with medical students and resident physicians during morning rounds at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital in 2014 in Norfolk, Va. Jay Westcott for The Washington Post/Getty Images hide caption

Rosemary Grant is a registered nurse and helps coordinate sepsis care at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. The center's goal, she says, is to get a patient who might be developing sepsis antibiotics within three hours. Ian C. Bates for NPR hide caption

Kristopher Kelly near his home in Concrete, Wash., in February. He broke his pelvis and all his ribs in a work accident last year. The resulting infection he developed in the hospital almost killed him. Ian C. Bates for NPR hide caption

A 4-year-old regulation in New York state requires doctors and hospitals to treat sepsis using a protocol that some researchers now question. Getty Images/iStockphoto hide caption