Meet Caitlin – Sepsis Australia

JUST ASK, COULD IT BE SEPSIS?

Sepsis is a life-threatening response to any infection that progresses quickly and requires immediate attention. Know the signs and symptoms (one or all of the following may be present).

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF SEPSIS

Rapid breathing

Rapid heart rate

Confusion, slurred speech or disorientation

Fever or shivering

Muscle pain

Not passing urine

Discoloured skin

WHAT YOU SHOULD DO!

Early-stage sepsis:

Sufferers are generally unwell, may display one or all of the signs and symptoms, feel worse than when previously sick and there is concern
Contact healthdirect at https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/ OR Call 1800 022 222 (24 hours) and ask…could it be sepsis?

Later stage sepsis:

Sufferers are seriously unwell, likely to display significant changes in multiple signs and symptoms, feel like they might die and there is serious concern
CALL 000 Ambulance or if quicker go immediately to the closest Emergency Department and ask….could it be sepsis?

Key considerations:

If concerned get advice immediately
If seriously concerned get treatment immediately
Inflammation due to infection is normal but in sepsis the inflammation response is uncontrolled, it may start mildly but rapidly escalate to critical illness
Sepsis is difficult to recognise as it may not have an obvious cause, it can look like viral or bacterial illnesses such as flu, gastro or urinary tract infection
Trust your intuition…if it doesn’t feel right TAKE ACTION and always ask…could it be sepsis?

symptom checker Call 000

At 23, after a quiet Saturday night dinner with a friend, following a ‘common cold’, I thought I had bitten my tongue. Tired, I lay on my bed, icing my tongue. Less than an hour later, my tongue had swelled, started to block my airway and left me speechless. We suspected anaphylaxis and my Aunt bundled me into the car and raced to hospital.

The local hospital tried everything they could but hadn’t seen this before and made the call for an emergency ambulance transfer to a bigger hospital. When I arrived at the bigger hospital, there were nearly 20 doctors and specialists waiting. They transferred me to the Intensive Care Unit, where they put me in an induced coma, paralyzed me, and put me on life support (ventilator). My family was told to prepare for the worst as I remained a medical mystery and the doctors raced against time.

I had scans, tests, and infectious disease specialists; but kept deteriorating. The rash burnt the top half of my body, my tongue blackened from lack of circulation and there were talks of amputation. The real cause was sepsis, resulting from Ludwig’s Angina and cellulitis. An unknown infected impacted wisdom tooth shown in a CT scan nearly cost me my life! I had no pain, good oral hygiene and no other symptoms, but the infection took over my body and nearly killed me.

The infection swelling started to crush my jugular vein and there was concern for blood flow to my heart and brain. Thankfully, they saved my life by surgically removing the tooth, inserting neck drains and putting me on heavy dose IV antibiotics.

I’m so thankful to be here and determined to make a difference in the world, give back to the hospital and change sepsis. It was in that hospital bed that I made the decision I had been given a second chance at life and to wear my scars with pride, so that others feel okay about theirs, too. I am so grateful everyday just to be here to join the fight against sepsis and make an impact. Knowing this is not just my story has led to the development of the FACE Sepsis Project in partnership with Sepsis Australia. I now educate dental and primary care practices on the signs, symptoms and importance of escalation and prevention of sepsis. Together, we can FACE Sepsis and make a difference.