Gurgaon-based diagnostic chain SRL Diagnostics on Wednesday launched ‘Sepsiscreen’ test to diagnose Sepsis, a disease caused by severe blood infection that leads to multiple-organ failure, in Hyderabad. SRL Diagnostics is looking at forging tie-ups with local hospitals here to conduct the one-time test, which is priced at Rs 13,500, SRL Diagnostics president (research and innovation) BR Das said.

“Sepsis is the most common but least recognized disease in India. SRL’s Sepsiscreen in ICU set-ups potentially provides a way to treat patients quickly without a delay in identifying the source of infection, and it works equally well with antibiotic-resistant organisms,” Das said.

He explained that identifying the specific pathogen responsible for sepsis can take several days, and in most patients, the causative agent is never identified. “Sepsiscreen test can be efficiently employed on blood specimens and is 13-75 hours faster than routine blood culture. By adhering to best practices and actively monitoring quality assurance measures, we feel confident that SRL Diagnostics is providing the best results in supporting clinicians in the diagnosis of sepsis,” he said.

According to the release issued by the organization, Sepsis is a major medical threat, which is increasing because of antibiotic resistance in patients and the disease claims over 2.5 lakh lives in India every year.

As per reports, one out of four patients in Indian intensive care units suffers from sepsis. According to a recent nationwide study of Indian Intensive Care Case Mix and Practice Patterns (INDICAPS) involving over 124 ICUs across 17 states in India, mortality was found to be as high as 46% in patients with septic shock and 42.2% overall in septic patients, compared with 17.8% mortality for ICU patients who did not develop sepsis.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Hyderabad / by Swati Rathor, TNN / February 04th, 2015