Romanian Society of Pharmaceutical Sciences
 

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SEPSIS BIOMARKERS. PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE

CAMELIA CRISTINA DIACONU1,2*, ALICE BĂLĂCEANU1,3, ELENA MOROȘAN1,4

1.“Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Bucharest, Romania
2 .Internal Medicine Clinic, Clinical Emergency Hospital of Bucharest, Romania
3 .Internal Medicine Clinic, “Sf. Ioan” Clinical Emergency Hospital, Bucharest, Romania
4 .Faculty of Pharmacy, Department of Clinical Laboratory and Food Safety

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Sepsis is the immunological response of systemic inflammation to bacterial, fungal or viral infection. An early diagnosis of sepsis is essential for the successful management of this condition; it allows the prompt administration of appropriate antibiotic regimens and avoidance of unnecessary interventions. A sepsis biomarker must be able to differentiate between bacterial and viral infection, to indicate the severity of infection, to guide the therapy and also must be available in a timely and cost-effective manner. Over the time, different biomarkers have been used for diagnosis of sepsis and monitoring of its treatment. Procalcitonin and C reactive protein are probably the most widely used biochemical parameters for diagnosis and management of patients with sepsis, together with lactate. TNF, IL-1β and IL-6 are cytokines that act as mediators of the immunological response to infection and could be potentially useful as biomarkers of sepsis.