Sepsis can affect anyone of any age. Those who are most at risk are in fact the very young and anybody who is suffering from a chronic health issue or who has an immune system that has been compromised. When people enter their 60’s the risk of developing sepsis is far higher than for other risk groups.
UK statistics show that every year there are about 250,000 cases of sepsis and out of that number at least 46,000 die. Many fatalities are due to the victims being frail or have a weakening of their immune system. This often occurs following a surgical event or if they have been exposed to a serious illness. It is not just the fatalities that are a concern, but that people who survive sepsis may be disabled for the rest of their lives. Organs can suffer when sepsis takes over and they do not always recover sufficiently for the victim to lead a normal life,
How sepsis occurs in older people
Researchers have reached certain conclusions that as we go through the aging process the immune system doesn’t seem to be so efficient at fighting off an infection. This means that older individuals tend to be more vulnerable to infections. When this happens, the infection is more likely to be severe. In the later part of life, people are more likely to develop debilitating diseases like diabetes, heart failure and kidney diseases. The infections that have a higher chance of triggering sepsis among the elderly are respiratory, like pneumonia, or genitourinary, like a urinary tract infection (UTI). Infections may result from skin sores and infected teeth. The infection could be triggered from just a small tear on the skin or a pressure sore from being confined to a wheelchair for far too long.
Unfortunately, elderly people do not always notice the symptoms of an infection, such as urinating more often than usual, or feeling a burning sensation when urinating takes place. The infection becomes more apparent when they start to become confused and disoriented. By this time sepsis might already be present. The general symptoms of sepsis in the elderly are:
- an increase of body temperature or falling below normal;
- rapid heart rate at more than 90 beats per 60 seconds;
- rapid breathing more than 20 breaths per 60 seconds;
- violent shaking;
- mental confusion.
Why sepsis is serious for older people
Sepsis is a very serious illness for anybody, whatever their age, but with older people who survive sepsis they are often affected mentally more than younger people. So much so that a sepsis survivor who is classified as elderly may not have the cognitive ability to look after themselves, which means their survival rate is reduced when compared to someone younger.
Treatment needs to be fast
There is no time for thinking and collaborating when someone is diagnosed with sepsis, so whether the victim is young or old the sepsis must be dealt with without delay so that it can be treated effectively.