--- title: "Webinar Roundup: Sepsis: A Clinical Overview" description: "In ECLAT Health Solutions' most recent Webinar: Sepsis: A Clinical Overview, our medical coding team discusses how to recognize the signs of sepsis." image: https://www.eclathealth.com/hubfs/image2.png --- [![ECLAT 2](https://www.eclathealth.com/hs-fs/hubfs/ECLAT%20Corporate%20Logo/ECLAT%20Corporate%20Logo%20with%20Tagline/ECLAT%202.png?width=225&height=84&name=ECLAT%202.png)](https://eclathealth.com)   [Contact Us](https://eclathealth.com/index.php/contact/)[subscribe](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/webinar-roundup-sepsis-a-clinical-overview#) ### I’d like to learn more about ECLAT Health Solutions! read # Webinar Roundup: Sepsis: A Clinical Overview Posted By Giovanna Stahl ![clinical coding solutions](https://www.eclathealth.com/hubfs/image2.png) - ** - ** - ** To determine and identify whether patients are at risk for sepsis, healthcare physicians and medical coders must have an efficient way of communicating all patient documentation and treatments to one another. Medical coding plays a crucial role in your healthcare facility’s revenue cycle. Your coding must be accurate, efficient, and secure to maintain healthy revenue and compliance. ECLAT Health Solutions provides [medical coding services](https://eclathealth.com/index.php/coding-services/) for hospitals, physician offices, Independent Practice Associations, and a variety of other healthcare providers.   In our most recent Webinar Roundup: Sepsis: A Clinical Overview, we discussed how to identify and recognize the signs of sepsis. This helped listeners explore sepsis’ clinical indicators and the many ways medical coders can increase accuracy to identify it.  ## The Clinical Perspective: What is Sepsis? Sepsis is a life-threatening condition in which the body is fighting a severe infection that has spread via the bloodstream. This condition can develop either as a result of the body's own defense system or from toxic substances made by the infecting agent. Survival rates for sepsis depend on the patient's underlying medical conditions, how quickly the diagnosis is made, the organism that causes the infection, and the patient's age. The number of people dying from sepsis has increased in the past 20 years.    - Every [20 seconds](https://hca-nys.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/2016_sepsis_facts_media.pdf), someone in the U.S. is diagnosed with sepsis - totaling more than 1.7 million cases annually.  - [270,000](https://www.aacc.org/media/press-release-archive/2019/01-jan/new-tests-could-reduce-deaths-from-sepsis-which-kills-more-people-than-heart-attacks) people die from sepsis every year in the U.S.- more than from breast cancer, prostate cancer, and AIDS combined.  - Mortality increases by as much as [8%](https://www.jwatch.org/na44188/2017/05/23/sepsis-mortality-increases-with-delays-treatment) for every hour that sepsis treatment is delayed- rapid diagnosis and treatment could prevent up to 80% of sepsis deaths.  ## The Medical Coding Perspective: How Is Sepsis Identified? Under 1992 and 2003 sepsis guidelines, sepsis was defined as systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) due to infection; and SIRS was defined as the presence of more than 2 of 4 findings:    - Body temperature >38.0 °C or <36.0 °C  - Heart Rate > 90 beats/min - Tachypnea > 20 breaths/min or hyperventilation with PaCO2 < 32 mm Hg - White blood cell (WBC) count > 12,000 cells/*m**m**3* or <4,000 cells/mm3   This definition is still used in many hospitals around the country, it’s the one that most clearly aligns with official coding guidelines. However, it is not the most current recommended definition.    In 2016, the [Third International Consensus Definition for Sepsis and Septic Shock](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4968574/) (Sepsis-3) redefined sepsis and the ways in which it is identified: - Sepsis is defined as life-threatening organ dysfunction due to dysregulated host response to infection  - Septic shock is a subset of sepsis in which the underlying circulatory and cellular/ metabolic abnormalities are profound enough to substantially increase mortality  - Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) Score, each system is scored on a scale of 0 to 4. An increase of >or equal to 2 in the SOFA score from the baseline is suggestive of sepsis. The baseline score is assumed to be 0 in patients with no known organ dysfunctions. ## Affects Major Organs Each person has a unique presentation of sepsis, symptoms should be carefully documented and reviewed to gain a full picture of the patient’s illness.   **Signs of sepsis are displayed in your: ** - Respiratory - Central nervous system - Renal - Hepatic - Coagulation - Cardiovascular system ### **For more information on this topic check out the **[**Webinar Replay and Handout Here.**](https://blog.eclathealth.com/sepsis-a-clinical-overview-replay-handout)** ** ### ECLAT Health Solutions: Quality Medical Coding Services At ECLAT Health Solutions, we provide quality [medical coding services](https://eclathealth.com/index.php/coding-services/) on a global scale and it is our mission to increase accuracy to promote a better patient experience. All our coders are AHIMA and/or AAPC certi­fied. Quality and security are our number one priority, and we always work to maintain compliance. Also, we offer 24-hour turnaround time and code while you sleep to give your facility the accurate coding it needs quickly. We understand the importance of ongoing education for sustained quality. That is why every quarter, ECLAT Health Solutions provides valuable educational content to our subscribers through our free educational webinar series – ‘Experience The Brilliance’.    Have more questions? [Fill out our form ](https://eclathealth.com/index.php/contact/)to get in touch with our medical coding specialists! Tags: [International Coding](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/tag/international-coding), [Medical Coding](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/tag/medical-coding), [Webinar](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/tag/webinar), [Sepsis](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/tag/sepsis) ### Related Articles** ## [Enriching Medical Billing and A/R Management for Healthcare Facilities](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/enrichingbilling) *( read )* Topics: [International Coding](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/tag/international-coding), [Medical Coding](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/tag/medical-coding), [Webinar](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/tag/webinar), [Sepsis](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/tag/sepsis) ## [CMS Ruling Impacts, Challenges and Concerns](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/cmsruling) *( read )* Topics: [International Coding](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/tag/international-coding), [Medical Coding](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/tag/medical-coding), [Webinar](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/tag/webinar), [Sepsis](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/tag/sepsis) ## [Unlocking Revenue Potential with ECLAT Health Solutions: Elevating Medical Coding Excellence](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/weknowthecode) *( read )* Topics: [International Coding](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/tag/international-coding), [Medical Coding](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/tag/medical-coding), [Webinar](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/tag/webinar), [Sepsis](https://www.eclathealth.com/en/newsroom/tag/sepsis) ### Subscribe to The ECLAT Blog ### Follow Us - [****](https://www.linkedin.com/company/eclat-health-solutions) - [****](https://www.facebook.com/eclathealthsolutions) - [****](https://twitter.com/eclathealthsol) - [****](https://eclathealth.com/index.php/contact/) ### About ECLAT ECLAT Health Solutions, Inc. (ECLAT) partners with some of the country's largest health systems and government payers. Our Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO) and technology solutions provide revenue intelligence that enables our clients to reduce costs and improve revenue recognition and cash flow. Our ability to improve clients' outcomes through flexible, scalable services and technologies sets ECLAT apart from our competitors. ECLAT is a U.S. private-equity company with offices in the US and internationally. [![ECLAT all white logo](https://www.eclathealth.com/hs-fs/hubfs/ECLAT%20all%20white%20logo.png?width=2206&name=ECLAT%20all%20white%20logo.png "ECLAT all white logo")](https://eclathealth.com/) - [CONTACT US](https://eclathealth.com/index.php/contact/) - [CAREERS](https://eclathealth.com/index.php/careers/) 13221 Woodland Park Road Suite 420 Herndon, VA 20171 Main Office: [(703) 665-4499](tel:7036654499) © 2021 ECLAT Health Solutions ![](https://ws.zoominfo.com/pixel/6Wp2Zfvbb1SrrOIyFGtd)