Clinical signs suggestive of sepsis are non-specific, making diagnosis of sepsis difficult.5 Blood cultures remain the gold standard for diagnosis of patients with suspected sepsis, however, they have several limitations.6, 7
Limitations of blood cultures in sepsis diagnosis:6, 7
- Require up to 5 days to obtain the results
- Lack sensitivity
- Easy to contaminate
- Cannot assist on early sepsis management decisions
Timely diagnosis and initiation of effective antibiotic treatment and sepsis management has been shown to improve patient outcomes. Almost 80% of patients with severe sepsis survive if treatment is initiated within 1 hour of diagnosis. Survival declines rapidly if treatment is delayed further, dropping to only 42% if initiated 6 hours after diagnosis.8 In addition, it is desirable to prevent unnecessary antibiotic usage in order to reduce treatment costs, reduce the risk of adverse reactions and to slow down the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.9, 10