Daily Blood Testing May Help Guide Earlier Antibiotic Stopping in Sepsis

 

 

“For decades, intensive care doctors have faced an impossible balancing act. Nobody wants to stop antibiotics too early and risk a patient's life, but continuing them unnecessarily also carries real dangers for individuals and society. What our study shows is that simple biomarker tests can provide an additional layer of reassurance when making these difficult decisions. The challenge now is helping health care teams feel confident acting on that information so patients receive exactly the treatment they need, for exactly as long as they need it,” said Paul Dark, vice dean for health and care partnerships at The University of Manchester and professor of critical care medicine at the Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust.

 

“Blood-test-guided antibiotic stewardship could become an important tool in the fight against antimicrobial resistance if implemented alongside existing clinical guidance and prescribing frameworks. These findings provide new insight into how hospitals could safely reduce antibiotic exposure in some of the sickest patients in the NHS while helping preserve the effectiveness of lifesaving drugs for future generations,” said Prof. Dark.

Related Links
University of Manchester
Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust