Researchers in the Center for Surgery, Innovation & Bioengineering at Mass General may have identified a way to predict the development of sepsis, a dangerous systemic infection, in patients with major #burn trauma. Using a tiny microfluidic device, researchers found that the motion of white blood cells called neutrophils is significantly altered 2-3 days before sepsis develops. In comparison to cells from healthy patients, the cells from burn patients show limited, slower and poorly organized movement towards a chemical signal and surprisingly cells from pre-sepsis burn patients spontaneously moved through the device even in the absence of a chemical signal. The ability to predict sepsis earlier could not only improve outcomes for patients, but it would also help to eliminate the unnecessary use of antibiotics in burn wards, which leads to more antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria. Caroline Jones, PhD, is lead author of the report.
Posted on: Fri, 09 Jan 2015 18:46:54 +0000
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