Difference Between Sepsis and Septicemia

Sepsis and septicemia are medical terms that refer to infections and your body's response to those infections. Both words originally stem from a Greek word, sēpsis, which means "to make rotten" or "to putrefy."

Sepsis and septicemia sometimes are used interchangeably, but they're not truly the same—although the terms are closely related, their definitions are different.

Learn the differences between sepsis and septicemia, as well as the importance of seeing a healthcare provider for a diagnosis so you can receive the proper treatment.

Sepsis and Inflammation

Sepsis is defined as an extreme inflammatory response to infection. 

When your body is threatened with a severe infection, your immune system responds by releasing chemical messengers to sound the alarm. These chemical messengers produce inflammation throughout your body.

The infection can be due to bacteria in the bloodstream, but sepsis can also be produced by an infection that is present only in one part of the body, such as pneumonia in the lungs.

The inflammation in sepsis can produce blood clots and leaking blood vessels. Without proper treatment, this can damage your organs and potentially kill you.

Sepsis can progress to septic shock with your blood pressure dropping and your bodily systems starting to shut down. Your lungs, liver, and kidneys can fail.

Thus, sepsis is a medical emergency. In fact, sepsis kills almost 270,000 Americans each year, and survivors can have life-long effects from the disease. The U.S. has more than 1.7 million annual cases.

Septicemia and Infection

Septicemia, sometimes called "blood poisoning," is caused by bacteria or other germs (like viruses or fungi) getting into the bloodstream and causing infection. Septicemia is defined as having bacteria in the bloodstream that can lead to sepsis. Blood poisoning is an accurate term since the overwhelming bacterial infection can indeed poison your blood.

Symptoms

Sepsis and septicemia can have some similar symptoms, but not all symptoms are the same.

Sepsis

If you're experiencing symptoms of sepsis, you should seek immediate medical help. Symptoms include:

• Fever
• Chills
• Mental confusion
• Rapid heartbeat
• Shaking
• Warm skin

In some people, the first signs of sepsis are:

• Confusion
• Rapid breathing

Elderly people, babies, young children, people with weakened immune systems, and people with long-term chronic illnesses are most at risk from sepsis.

Septicemia

Some people with septicemia are asymptomatic or have only mild fever, but other symptoms include:

• Tachypnea (abnormally rapid breathing)
• Shaking chills
• Persistent fever
• Altered state of mind (confusion, amnesia, disorientation, strange or unusual behavior)
• Drop in blood pressure
• Gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms (abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea)

Just like with sepsis, if you are experiencing symptoms of septicemia, you should seek immediate medical help.

Causes

Although sepsis and septicemia are both related to infection in the body, the causes may be different.

Sepsis

Although many different infections can cause sepsis, some possible causes include:

• Meningitis
• Urinary tract infections
• Skin infections
• Abdominal infections

Sepsis can also be acquired in a hospital from contaminated intravenous lines and surgical incisions.

Some of these infections result from so-called "superbugs," which are types of bacteria that are resistant to many different antibiotics. These infections and the resulting sepsis are very difficult to treat.

Septicemia

Bacteria, viruses, and fungi can get into the bloodstream through various ways, such as:

• An abscessed tooth
• Germs on medical equipment (like surgical tools and needles)
• Kidney infection
• Pneumonia
• Skin ulcers or other wounds
• Urinary tract infection

If the body is exposed to a small number of germs, it can usually get rid of them on its own. But if germs grow and spread, it can lead to sepsis.

Diagnosis

Healthcare providers and other medical personnel rarely use the term septicemia anymore. Instead, they often use "bacteremia" to refer to the bacteria present in the bloodstream. and "sepsis" to refer to the inflammatory response.

Other types of infections, such as fungal infections, have different names.

However, some healthcare providers and hospitals do still use the older term "septicemia" interchangeably with sepsis, in some cases. If you're confused about what exactly your healthcare provider means, ask them to explain.

Sepsis

Healthcare providers diagnose sepsis by checking for physical findings such as:

• Fever
• Low blood pressure
• Increased heart rate
• Difficulty breathing

Tests may include:

• Blood tests to check for signs of infection or organ damage
• Blood cultures looking for bacterial infections
• Tests looking for viral infections

Septicemia

To diagnose septicemia, a healthcare provider will evaluate any symptoms that are present and do blood tests to identify the bacterium, virus, or fungus.

Treatment

It's important to get the proper diagnosis because treatment may vary.

Sepsis

Healthcare providers treat people with sepsis in hospital intensive care units. They try to stop the infection, protect the vital organs, and prevent a drop in blood pressure. Treatment usually includes:

• Intravenous (IV) antibiotics targeted at the specific type of bacteria or other medications to target viruses or fungi
• Plenty of fluids

More serious stages of sepsis can involve life support measures, such as a ventilator (breathing tube), kidney dialysis, or surgery to remove an infection.

Septicemia

Early treatment of bacteremia is critical for preventing it from becoming sepsis. Infections caused by bacteria are treated with IV antibiotics. The type of antibiotic will depend on the type of bacteria causing the infection. If the infection is caused by a virus or fungus, treatment will include an antiviral or antifungal medication.

Treatment may require adjusting antibiotics, draining any abscesses, and removing any internal devices if they are the suspected source of bacteria.

Oral antibiotics may be given once the source of bacteria is controlled and symptoms have significantly improved.