Covid-19 sepsis study; Diagnosing the onset of severe Covid-19 disease

COVID-19 Research Area(s): Diagnostics, Genomics & Transmission Dynamics, Healthcare Delivery & Policy

Many individuals dying from severe Covid-19 infections have sepsis, an abnormal host response to infection that causes life-threatening organ dysfunction. Sepsis is a very complex disease, consisting of phenotypic clusters of patients (endotypes), which are relevant to clinical outcomes. We have defined 5 unique sepsis endotypes in a large clinical study and will extend this to severely ill Covid-19 patients by analyzing gene expression data and define genes that correlate with future disease severity. This information will allow the development of a diagnostic, enabling physicians to predict the likely severity of a patient's disease and provide improved treatment and outcomes.