Systemic inflammatory response syndrome

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In medicine, systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) is "a systemic inflammatory response to a variety of clinical insults, characterized by two or more of the following conditions":[1]

  1. fever >38° C (100.4° F) or hypothermia <36° C (96.8° F)
  2. tachycardia >90 beat/minute
  3. tachypnea >24 breaths/minute;
  4. leukocytosis >12,000 cells/cubic mm or 10% immature forms

"While usually related to infection, SIRS can also be associated with noninfectious insults such as trauma; burns; or pancreatitis. If infection is involved, a patient with SIRS is said to have sepsis."[1]

A minority of patients have positive blood cultures.[2]

References