Sepsis is a major cause of mortality worldwide. Longitudinal data from Australia and New Zealand show that the incidence of sepsis-related admissions to the ICU is increasing from 2,700 patient admissions in 2000 to over 12,500 in 2012. Similar patterns have been reported internationally.

Central to the management of sepsis is prompt use of effective antibiotic therapy directed at the likely source of the initiating infection. One important class of agents used to treat infections in patients with sepsis are the β-lactams antibiotics. Since the late 1930s, β-lactam antibiotics have mostly been administered via intermittent intravenous infusion. However, there is a strong biological precedent that administration of beta-lactams via continuous infusion may be substantially more effective in certain clinical scenarios.

Led by researchers at UQ, the Beta-Lactam Infusion Group (BLING) III study aims to answer this question by recruiting 7000 patients from up to 100 intensive care units around the world. If successful, the results of this trial will be far reaching, as it will help optimise dosing of these life-saving antibiotics in a group of patients at high risk of dying from these types of infections.

About UQCCR Seminar Series

UQCCR Seminar Series

The UQ Centre of Clinical Research (UQCCR) Seminars are held fortnightly on Wednesdays from 12 pm - 1 pm (except during school holidays) currently on Zoom. The series features topics in multiple research fields, presented by invited international, interstate and local researchers.

 

Venue

UQ Centre for Clinical Research, Bldg 71/918 RBWH Campus, Herston
Room: 
UQCCR Auditorium