Contemporary definition of sepsis and the role of the Acute Medicine trainee in the management

Dear Editor,

We read with interest the review of shock by Rowe and Fletcher in the Acute Medicine Journal,1 and would like to make some comments regarding the contemporary definition of sepsis and the role of the Acute Medicine trainee in the management of severe sepsis and septic shock.

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References

1. Rowe K, Fletcher SJ. The emergency management of the patient presenting with shock. Acute Med 2011; 10(2): 103–105.
2. Members of the American College of Chest Physicians/Society of Crit Care Med Consensus Conference Committee: American College of Chest Physicians/Society of Crit Care Med Consensus Conference: Definitions for sepsis and organ failure and guidelines for the use of innovative therapies in sepsis. Crit Care Med 1992; 20: 864–874.
3. Levy MM, Fink MP, Marshall JC, et al. 2001 SCCM/ESICM/ACCP/ATS/SIS International Sepsis Definitions Conference. Crit Care Med 2003; 31: 1250–1256.
4. Dellinger RP, Levy MM, Carlet JM, et al. Surviving Sepsis Campaign: International guidelines for management of severe sepsis and septic shock: 2008 [published correction appears in Crit Care Med 2008; 36: 1394 –1396]. Crit Care Med 2008; 36: 296–327.
5. Specialty training curriculum for Acute Internal Medicine: Joint Royal Colleges of Physicians Training Board, London 2009. Accessed at http://www.jrcptb.org.uk/specialties/ST3-SpR/Docume nts/2009%20Ac ute%20Internal%20Medic ine%20(AIM)%20Curriculum.pdf on 30 June 2011.
6. Townsend S, Dellinger RP, Levy MM, et al., editors. Implementing the Surviving Sepsis Campaign. Des Plaines, Brussels, and Land O Lakes: Society of Critical Care Medicine, European Society of Intensive Care, and International Sepsis Forum; 2005.