A narrative review of the pathophysiology of sepsis in sub-Saharan Africa: Exploring the potential for corticosteroid therapy.

ABSTRACT: Sepsis remains a significant global health threat with a disproportionate burden in low-income countries including those in sub-Saharan Africa where case fatality rates are as high as 30% to 50%. Defined as a severe systemic response to infection, sepsis leads to widespread immune dysregulation and organ dysfunction, including adrenal insufficiency. Critical illness-related corticosteroid insufficiency (CIRCI) arises from dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, altered cortisol metabolism, and tissue resistance to glucocorticoids, all of which can occur during sepsis. Clinical trials of corticosteroids for the treatment of patients with sepsis and septic shock have shown improvements in shock reversal, and in some studies, patient survival; however, their role in th

SUBMITTER: Gruccio P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11981229 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature