Published online Mar 9, 2023. doi: 10.5492/wjccm.v12.i2.71
Peer-review started: November 22, 2022
First decision: December 26, 2022
Revised: January 5, 2023
Accepted: February 17, 2023
Article in press: February 17, 2023
Published online: March 9, 2023
Processing time: 104 Days and 15.4 Hours
Despite various therapies to treat sepsis, it is one of the leading causes of mortality in the intensive care unit patients globally. Knowledge about the pathophysiology of sepsis has sparked interest in extracorporeal therapies (ECT) which are intended to balance the dysregulation of the immune system by removing excessive levels of inflammatory mediators.
To review recent data on the use of ECT in sepsis and to assess their effects on various inflammatory and clinical outcomes.
In this review, an extensive English literature search was conducted from the last two decades to identify the use of ECT in sepsis. A total of 68 articles from peer-reviewed and indexed journals were selected excluding publications with only abstracts.
Results showed that ECT techniques such as high-volume hemofiltration, coupled plasma adsorption/filtration, resin or polymer adsorbers, and CytoSorb® are emerging as adjunct therapies to improve hemodynamic stability in sepsis. CytoSorb® has the most published data in regard to the use in the field of septic shock with reports on improved survival rates and lowered sequential organ failure assessment scores, lactate levels, total leucocyte count, platelet count, interleukin- IL-6, IL-10, and TNF levels.
Clinical acceptance of ECT in sepsis and septic shock is currently still limited due to a lack of large random clinical trials. In addition to patient-tailored therapies, future research developments with therapies targeting the cellular level of the immune response are expected.
Core Tip: Sepsis is one of the leading causes of mortality in critically ill patients globally. Substantial progress is made in the field of extracorporeal therapies and sepsis. CytoSorb® is emerging as an adjunct therapy to improve hemodynamic stability. This device is an International Organization for Standardization certified, European Conformité Européenne mark-approved class IIb medical device that is designed to remove excess inflammatory cytokines from the blood. There are extensive published reports of its use in the field of septic shock with improved survival rates and other improved biochemical parameters. However, clinical acceptance is still limited due to a lack of large random clinical trials.