What are the clinical manifestations of bacteremia?

Some friends may be confused about bacteremia and sepsis. Bacteremia is a disease in which disintegrated bacteria enter the human body through the mouth or infected site and then multiply in the blood. Bacteremia, like sepsis, can pose a great threat to the health of the whole body.

Bacteremia refers to the process in which bacteria from outside enter the blood system through an entrance on the body surface or an entrance of infection, multiply in the human blood, and spread throughout the body with the blood flow. The consequences are very serious. Generally speaking, catheters or surgical ostomies on the body surface are prone to bacteremia.

Clinical manifestations

1. Sudden high fever, which may reach 40-41 degrees, or low temperature, with rapid onset, severe condition and rapid progression;

2. Headache, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and impaired consciousness;

3. Increased heart rate, rapid pulse, rapid or difficult breathing;

4. The liver and spleen may be enlarged, and in severe cases, jaundice and subcutaneous hemorrhages may occur.

Unless the patient is at risk for persistent or high-level bacteremia, transient, low-level bacteremia is typically asymptomatic. Typical manifestations are signs of systemic infection, including shortness of breath, chills, elevated temperature, and gastrointestinal symptoms (abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea). In the early stages of the illness, the patient's skin is often warm and alertness is decreased. Low blood pressure often goes undetected if your blood pressure is not measured. Some patients develop hypotension later.

Certain characteristics help identify the cause and the bacteria that cause the disease. Infections above the diaphragm are mostly caused by Gram-positive bacteria, while abdominal infections, including biliary and urinary tract infections, are mostly caused by Gram-negative bacteria. However, there is no reliable method for differentiation except laboratory diagnosis for Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteremia and septic shock.

Metastatic abscesses may develop in almost any location and, when extensive, may produce symptoms and signs characteristic of infection in the affected organ. In staphylococcal bacteremia, multiple abscess formation is common. 25% to 40% of patients with persistent bacteremia may develop hemodynamic instability and septic shock.