Among children who survived sepsis, about one in five developed or had progression of a comorbid condition following sepsis hospitalization, according to a study published in JAMA Pediatrics. Erin F. Carlton, MD, and colleagues quantified the development and progression of four common conditions in the 6 months after sepsis and assessed whether they differed after hospitalization for sepsis versus non-sepsis among critically ill children. The analysis included children with sepsis (N=5,150) or non-sepsis hospitalization (N=96,361). Among pediatric sepsis survivors, 13% developed a new target condition, and 21% with a pre-existing target condition had disease progression. Compared with survivors of non-sepsis hospitalizations, new conditions were more common among sepsis survivors (new chronic respiratory failure: OR, 2.54; new supplemental nutritional dependence: OR, 3.17; and new chronic kidney disease [CKD]: OR, 1.65), although a new seizure disorder was less common (OR, 0.77). Among sepsis survivors, progressive supplemental nutritional dependence was more common (OR, 2.95), but progressive epilepsy was less common (OR, 0.74).

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