©The Author(s) 2025. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Psychiatry. Oct 19, 2025; 15(10): 110768
Published online Oct 19, 2025. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v15.i10.110768
Published online Oct 19, 2025. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v15.i10.110768
Neuropsychiatric outcomes in sepsis: A vital sign worth monitoring
Michael Luke Middleton, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, United States
Brandon Lucke-Wold, Lillian S. Wells Department of Neurosurgery, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32608, United States
Author contributions: Middleton ML conducted the literature review and contributed to writing manuscript; Lucke-Wold B supervised the project, contributed to the conceptual framing, and revised the manuscript. All authors have approved the final manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Corresponding author: Brandon Lucke-Wold, MD, PhD, Lillian S. Wells Department of Neurosurgery, University of Florida, 1505 SW Archer Road, Gainesville, FL 32608, United States. brandon.lucke-wold@neurosurgery.ufl.edu
Received: June 16, 2025
Revised: July 11, 2025
Accepted: August 4, 2025
Published online: October 19, 2025
Processing time: 104 Days and 6.4 Hours
Revised: July 11, 2025
Accepted: August 4, 2025
Published online: October 19, 2025
Processing time: 104 Days and 6.4 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: Neuropsychiatric symptoms such as delirium, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder in septic shock are often dismissed as secondary or unavoidable outcomes of critical illness. New data suggest that these symptoms may be real-time indicators of hemodynamic instability and cerebral hypoperfusion. This editorial argues that altered cognition and mood during septic shock should be monitored alongside traditional vital signs like mean arterial pressure and lactate.