Gauging the severity of surgical sepsis
L. E. Stevens
I developed a method for scoring the severity of a septic process, based on
deteriorated functions in seven key organ systems of the body. The scoring
system is numeric and recognizes that the risk to a patient rises
geometrically as organ-system functions deteriorate step by step. The
scoring system was validated by reviewing the clinical course of 30
patients with sepsis. Prognosis and hospital stay correlated well with
individual scores. The scoring system offered more accurate comparisons in
clinical studies of infected patients and helped follow up a patient with
sepsis more accurately.
