Systemic inflammatory response syndrome

Overview
In medicine, systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) is an inflammatory state of the whole body (the "system") without a proven source of infection. It is a serious medical condition.

Definition of SIRS
Criteria for SIRS were agreed in 1992. SIRS can be diagnosed when two or more of the following are present  :
 * Heart rate > 90 beats per minute
 * Body temperature 38°C
 * Tachypnea (high respiratory rate) > 20 breaths per minute or, on blood gas, a PaCO2 < 4.3 kPa (32 mm Hg)
 * White blood cell count < 4000 cells/mm³ or > 12000 cells/mm³ (< 4 x 109 or > 12 x 109 cells/L), or the presence of greater than 10% immature neutrophils.

Difference between SIRS and sepsis
SIRS with a suspected or proven infection is called sepsis.

Simply stated:
 * SIRS + infection = sepsis

Complications of SIRS
SIRS can result in the multiple organ dysfunction syndrome.

Causes of SIRS

 * Severe trauma
 * Surgery, complication of
 * Burns
 * Acute pancreatitis
 * Immunodeficiency (such as AIDS )

Relation to cytokine storm
SIRS can be considered to be a subset of cytokine storm, a general term (not commonly used in clinical medicine) for cytokine dysregulation.

Textbooks

 * Intensive Care Medicine by Irwin and Rippe
 * Critical Care Medicine The Essentials by Marini and Wheeler
 * The ICU Book by Marini and Sutin
 * Cecil Textbook of Medicine
 * The Oxford Textbook of Medicine
 * Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine

External link

 * Bacteremia and Septic Shock (Merck Manual) - explains the usage of the terms bacteremia, septic shock, sepsis and septicemia.

Systemisches inflammatorisches Response-Syndrom Síndrome de respuesta inflamatoria sistémica SIRS Hội chứng đáp ứng viêm hệ thống