New research from Örebro University Hospital highlights how improved diagnostics and individualized antibiotic treatment could significantly enhance sepsis care. The findings, presented in a recent dissertation by specialist physician Karolina Liljedahl Prytz, focus on optimizing early management of patients with this life-threatening condition.
Liljedahl Prytz, who works in the Infectious Diseases department at Örebro University Hospital, studied how patients are identified and how different antibiotic strategies—monotherapy versus combination therapy—affect outcomes. She likewise examined how variations in the body’s response to infection influence treatment results.
“Our studies indicate that patients often receive the same antibiotic doses despite significant individual differences in age, sex, comorbidities, and kidney function,” she explained. “At the same time, changes in circulation and organ function can affect how drugs are absorbed and broken down, altering the concentrations we measure in the blood.”
The research emphasizes the potential of personalized dosing approaches that combine therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) with model-informed precision dosing (MIPD) to improve treatment effectiveness. Early detection and accurate treatment remain critical in sepsis care, but the condition’s variability among patients complicates both diagnosis and therapy.
Sepsis is a leading cause of acute medical care and poses a serious threat to patient survival. By tailoring treatment based on individual patient characteristics and early disease progression, clinicians may be able to improve outcomes and reduce the burden of this challenging condition.
