Die Sepsis ist noch immer eines der bedrohlichsten Krankheitsbilder der modernen Medizin mit einer hohen Mortalitätsrate. Das zunehmende Wissen um die Komplexität und Heterogenität
der septischen Immunpathologie kann Wege eröffnen, zukünftig Sepsispatienten individueller – und somit erfolgreicher – behandeln zu können. Dieser Beitrag stellt den aktuellen
Kenntnisstand der Pathophysiologie der Sepsis und des septischen Schocks dar.
Abstract
Up to now, sepsis is one of the most threatening diseases and its therapy remains challenging. Sepsis is currently defined as a severely dysregulated immune response to an infection
resulting in organ dysfunction. The pathophysiology is mainly driven by exogenous PAMPs (“pathogen-associated molecular patterns”) and endogenous DAMPs (“damage-associated
molecular patterns“), which can activate PRRs (“pattern recognition receptors”) on different cell types (mainly immune cells), leading to the initiation of manifold downstream
pathways and a perpetuation of patients’ immune response. Sepsis is neither an exclusive pro- nor an anti-inflammatory disease: both processes take place in parallel, resulting in
an individual immunologic disease state depending on the severity of each component at different time points. Septic shock is a complex disorder of the macro- and microcirculation,
provoking a severe lack of oxygenation further aggravating sepsis defining organ dysfunctions. An in-depth knowledge of the heterogeneity and the time-dependency of the septic
immunopathology will be essential for the design of future sepsis trials and therapy planning in patients with sepsis. The big aim is to achieve a more individualized treatment
strategy in patients suffering from sepsis or septic shock.
Schlüsselwörter
Sepsis - septischer Schock - Inflammation - COVID-19
Keywords
sepsis - septic shock - inflammation - COVID-19