Epidemiology of community acquired sepsis in children in Australia and New Zealand: a multicentre prospective cohort study (July 2025)

Summary

Paediatric sepsis epidemiology is unclear due to variability in case ascertainment. This study describes the epidemiology of community acquired sepsis in Australian and New Zealand children using the Phoenix sepsis criteria. It found that hospitalisation for suspected sepsis was relatively infrequent. The Phoenix sepsis criteria identified children with more severe illness and worse outcomes, but underestimated the overall burden of sepsis.