Does Diabetes Worsen Sepsis Outcomes?

Diabetes likely does not worsen the outcomes of patients with sepsis, according to a recent meta-analysis. However, diabetes significantly increases the risk of acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients with sepsis.

Patients with diabetes face an increased risk of developing infectious complications, including sepsis. However, the impact of diabetes on sepsis-related patient outcomes remains controversial.
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In their analysis, the researchers evaluated 10 studies conducted between 2000 and 2016. Study data was obtained through searches of the PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases.

The researchers defined the primary outcomes as 28-day or 30-day mortality, or in-hospital mortality.

Results of the analysis indicated that the sepsis-related mortality of patients with diabetes was slightly lower than that of patients without diabetes. However, patients with diabetes who developed sepsis demonstrated a higher incidence rate of AKI and a similar incidence of respiratory dysfunction, compared with patients without diabetes.

“The results from the meta-analysis suggest that [diabetes mellitus] does not impair the outcome of patients with sepsis, and the incidence of acute kidney injury increases dramatically in septic patients with [diabetes mellitus],” the researchers concluded. “Due to the limitations of the analysis, more well-designed trials are still necessary.”

—Christina Vogt

Reference:

Wang Z, Ren J, Wang G, Liu Q, Guo K, Li J. Association between diabetes mellitus and outcomes of patients with sepsis: a meta-analysis. Med Sci Monit. 2017;23:3546-3555. doi:10.12659/MSM.903144.