A CME (continuing medical education) on the life-threatening illness sepsis will be conducted by renowned cardiac surgeon Dr Swatantra Mishra in Muscat.

“Most of us are unaware of the term ‘sepsis’, what causes it and how fatal it can be,” says Dr Mishra, head of Critical Care services at Muscat Private Hospital (MPH).

‘Challenging Sepsis – Latest Management Approach’, will throw more light on sepsis, which is a serious medical condition characterised by whole-body inflammation; caused only secondary to infection.

Sepsis is broadly defined as the presence of various pus-forming and other pathogenic organisms, or their toxins, in the blood or tissues.

“While the term is frequently used to refer to septicemia (blood poisoning), septicemia is but one type of sepsis. It is caused by bacterial infection that can originate anywhere in the body. The most common sites include the kidneys, the liver or the gall bladder, the bowel, the skin and the lungs,” explained Dr Mishra.

“Sepsis is a life-threatening illness. Direct effect of infection and your body’s response to a bacterial infection usually cause it. Your immune system goes into overdrive, overwhelming normal processes in your blood. The result is that small blood clots form, blocking blood flow to vital organs. This can lead to multi-organ failure. Babies, old people and those with weakened immune systems are most likely to get sepsis. But even healthy people can become deathly ill from it. A quick diagnosis can be crucial, because one-third of people who get sepsis die from it.”

Hailing from one of the premier institutions in India, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Dr Mishra is the first DM in cardiac anaesthesia in the world and is the head of the critical care services at MPH. He has more than 6,000 open-heart procedures to his credit with special expertise in neonates who weigh less than 1.5kg as well as cardiac transplantation.

He is also an active member of many national and international societies including the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine, and is a regular invitee to national and international scientific forums to deliver talks and conduct CMEs.

Hospital director Gerard Strong added: “Since the condition is not very obvious, it is not often diagnosed at an early stage. Considering that the diagnosis is often delayed, it is usually treated in a hospital intensive care unit (ICU). IV antibiotics and fluids may be given to try to knock out the infection and to keep blood pressure from dropping too low. Dr Mishra, who is an expert in the field, will help people and doctors identify important signs and symptoms for diagnosis and recovery.”

Muscat Private Hospital is Muscat’s premier private medical facility. Located in Baushar, the hospital provides first-class out-patient and in-patient facilities and all the diagnostic and treatment capabilities of an acute care hospital, including CT and MRI. – TradeArabia News Service