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Symptoms of Septic Shock in Children

Septic shock is a condition that develops out of sepsis, an immune response to a foreign pathogen that not only fights infection, but also can damage healthy tissue within the body. A bacterial infection is by far the main culprit of this abnormal reaction, triggering an inflammatory response throughout the body. As the inflammation sets in, blood vessels begin to clot. Normally, the body would break down these clots. But since the immune system is in such a heightened state, these clots remain intact and can begin to restrict oxygen to your vital organs. After a period of time, this can damage healthy tissue and disrupt the function of the affected organs, prompting symptoms of the condition.

  1. Fever

    • For many children, a symptom of both sepsis and septic shock is a fever. This fever can range in temperature, but it usually starts out at 101.3 degrees F and goes up from there. However, some kids won't actually have a fever at all. Instead, they'll suffer a drop in body temperature of under 95 degrees F. Both heightened and lowered temperatures may also prompt some shaking or "the chills."

    Respiratory Disturbance

    • Often accompanying this fever is a respiratory change. At the onset of sepsis, your child may begin to manifest an increase in his respiratory rate, having more rapid breaths of over 20 a minute. As his condition becomes more severe, this rapid breathing may change to an actual difficulty in respiration. This could be struggling to catch a breath, a shortness of breath or an unexplained windedness. Your child may even start to hyperventilate.

    Urinary Disturbance

    • It is also possible for your child to suffer from a change in urination prior to septic shock. In this situation, you may notice less and less urine production, even when fluid intake has remained exactly the same.

    Cognitive Changes

    • Prior to septic shock, your child may experience a sudden cognitive change. She may seem overly confused or bewildered even becoming delirious, irrational or highly emotional. For other kids, they could experience a marked restlessness or irritability.

    Skin Discoloration

    • For some kids, they'll suffer from a skin discoloration that is best described as mottled, which is essentially a condition where spots or blotches of discoloration form along the skin.

    Cardiovascular Changes

    • Sepsis can often cause your child to suffer from an elevation in her heart rate, becoming more rapid or racing at higher than 90 beats per minute. As the condition persists, it could start to affect the actual function of the heart, causing an irregular or uneven heartbeat. But as soon as the septic shock hits, your child's blood pressure will swiftly drop to a dangerously low level.

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