A case of pneumonia and sepsis in cirrhosis as paradigm of the problems in the management of bacterial infections in cirrhosis and of the limitations of current knowledge
Bacterial infections are a major problem in the management of liver cirrhosis. They represent the first precipitating cause of death since patients with cirrhosis carry an increased risk of sepsis, sepsis-induced organ failure and death. Although the clinical presentation is often misleading, the pr...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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PAGEPress Publications
2013-09-01
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| Series: | Italian Journal of Medicine |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.italjmed.org/index.php/ijm/article/view/94 |
| _version_ | 1797424066703917056 |
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| author | Manuel Tufoni Alessandra Tovoli Caterina Maggioli Lucia Napoli Carmen Serena Ricci Marianna Mastroroberto Giacomo Zaccherini Paolo Caraceni |
| author_facet | Manuel Tufoni Alessandra Tovoli Caterina Maggioli Lucia Napoli Carmen Serena Ricci Marianna Mastroroberto Giacomo Zaccherini Paolo Caraceni |
| author_sort | Manuel Tufoni |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Bacterial infections are a major problem in the management of liver cirrhosis. They represent the first precipitating cause of death since patients with cirrhosis carry an increased risk of sepsis, sepsis-induced organ failure and death. Although the clinical presentation is often misleading, the presence of bacterial infection should always be actively searched and ruled out with certainty whenever a cirrhotic patient is admitted to the hospital with an acute clinical deterioration. Major changes in the epidemiology of bacterial infections have also occurred in the last decade making the choice of empirical antibiotic therapy a challenge. We report a paradigmatic case of a 54-year old man with hepatitis C-related cirrhosis admitted to the hospital for worsening of his ascites and onset of hepatic encephalopathy, an excellent example for the difficulties of management of sepsis in cirrhosis and the limits of current knowledge. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T07:55:57Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b59547163a72420ca632c93ca462ff10 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1877-9344 1877-9352 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T07:55:57Z |
| publishDate | 2013-09-01 |
| publisher | PAGEPress Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Italian Journal of Medicine |
| spelling | doaj.art-b59547163a72420ca632c93ca462ff102023-12-03T01:01:37ZengPAGEPress PublicationsItalian Journal of Medicine1877-93441877-93522013-09-017320921410.4081/itjm.2013.209351A case of pneumonia and sepsis in cirrhosis as paradigm of the problems in the management of bacterial infections in cirrhosis and of the limitations of current knowledgeManuel Tufoni0Alessandra Tovoli1Caterina Maggioli2Lucia Napoli3Carmen Serena Ricci4Marianna Mastroroberto5Giacomo Zaccherini6Paolo Caraceni7UO Semeiotica Medica, Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Policlinico Sant’Orsola-Malpighi, Università di BolognaUO Semeiotica Medica, Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Policlinico Sant’Orsola-Malpighi, Università di BolognaUO Semeiotica Medica, Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Policlinico Sant’Orsola-Malpighi, Università di BolognaUO Semeiotica Medica, Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Policlinico Sant’Orsola-Malpighi, Università di BolognaUO Semeiotica Medica, Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Policlinico Sant’Orsola-Malpighi, Università di BolognaSSD Trapianto di Fegato, Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Policlinico Sant’Orsola Malpighi, Università di BolognaUO Semeiotica Medica, Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Policlinico Sant’Orsola-Malpighi, Università di BolognaUO Semeiotica Medica, Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Policlinico Sant’Orsola-Malpighi, Università di BolognaBacterial infections are a major problem in the management of liver cirrhosis. They represent the first precipitating cause of death since patients with cirrhosis carry an increased risk of sepsis, sepsis-induced organ failure and death. Although the clinical presentation is often misleading, the presence of bacterial infection should always be actively searched and ruled out with certainty whenever a cirrhotic patient is admitted to the hospital with an acute clinical deterioration. Major changes in the epidemiology of bacterial infections have also occurred in the last decade making the choice of empirical antibiotic therapy a challenge. We report a paradigmatic case of a 54-year old man with hepatitis C-related cirrhosis admitted to the hospital for worsening of his ascites and onset of hepatic encephalopathy, an excellent example for the difficulties of management of sepsis in cirrhosis and the limits of current knowledge.http://www.italjmed.org/index.php/ijm/article/view/94cirrhosis, sepsis, bacterial infection, healthcare related pneumonia, hepatorenal syndrome. |
| spellingShingle | Manuel Tufoni Alessandra Tovoli Caterina Maggioli Lucia Napoli Carmen Serena Ricci Marianna Mastroroberto Giacomo Zaccherini Paolo Caraceni A case of pneumonia and sepsis in cirrhosis as paradigm of the problems in the management of bacterial infections in cirrhosis and of the limitations of current knowledge Italian Journal of Medicine cirrhosis, sepsis, bacterial infection, healthcare related pneumonia, hepatorenal syndrome. |
| title | A case of pneumonia and sepsis in cirrhosis as paradigm of the problems in the management of bacterial infections in cirrhosis and of the limitations of current knowledge |
| title_full | A case of pneumonia and sepsis in cirrhosis as paradigm of the problems in the management of bacterial infections in cirrhosis and of the limitations of current knowledge |
| title_fullStr | A case of pneumonia and sepsis in cirrhosis as paradigm of the problems in the management of bacterial infections in cirrhosis and of the limitations of current knowledge |
| title_full_unstemmed | A case of pneumonia and sepsis in cirrhosis as paradigm of the problems in the management of bacterial infections in cirrhosis and of the limitations of current knowledge |
| title_short | A case of pneumonia and sepsis in cirrhosis as paradigm of the problems in the management of bacterial infections in cirrhosis and of the limitations of current knowledge |
| title_sort | case of pneumonia and sepsis in cirrhosis as paradigm of the problems in the management of bacterial infections in cirrhosis and of the limitations of current knowledge |
| topic | cirrhosis, sepsis, bacterial infection, healthcare related pneumonia, hepatorenal syndrome. |
| url | http://www.italjmed.org/index.php/ijm/article/view/94 |
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