Don’t we already know how to treat children with septic shock?
In Europe, Northern America and Australia guidelines that specify how to identify and treat children with septic shock leading to intravascular volume depletion have been widely adopted and resulted in significant improvements in outcome. Nevertheless, the context in which these are applied are very different. Access to well resourced emergency and intensive care units is guaranteed whereas most children in Africa will be treated in hospitals with very limited infrastructure and few personnel. These are major obstacles to administering potential life saving fluid resuscitation where current medical practise differs and where the safety of the intervention remains a major concern.
