Summary
A new term, the systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), has been coined to describe a pathophysiological state that occurs secondary to infectious and noninfectious states such as burns and trauma. When SIRS is secondary to infection, it is called sepsis. In SIRS the host response produces the inflammatory reaction to the inciting agent.
The SIRS can produce conditions that progress through stages of severity, including hypotension, to multiorgan failure. Because multiorgan failure is characterised by numerous definitions that imply extreme organ damage, the term multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) should be used to denote abnormal organ function for all grades of severity.
The pathogenesis of SIRS and MODS involves multiple mediators, including cytokines released from mononuclear phagocytes. The lipopolysaccharide-cytokine score relates the levels of several such mediators to mortality.
Management of SIRS includes supportive therapy, antibacterials when appropriate, and the treatment of the inflammatory response.
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Bone, R.C. The Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome. Clin. Immunother. 1, 369–377 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03258514
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03258514