Septicaemia
Septicaemia is the presence of the products of bacterial breakdown of tissues - called sepsis - in the bloodstream. When bacteria, either by direct invasion of tissues or by the production of toxins which attack cells, cause cell break down and death, widespread absorption of the bacteria, the dead tissues, together with the components of the immune response, into the bloodstream and subsequent dissemination round the body - known as blood poisoning - can cause overwhelming infection and death. Septicaemia can arise as a result of the rupture of a localised infection, such as an abscess, into the bloodstream. It is much more likely in patients who are immunosuppressed (described in the section on Immunity).
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