Combining blood test with AI may mean more accurate sepsis diagnosis

Combining artificial intelligence (AI) with a simple blood test could help diagnose sepsis faster and single out patients at the highest risk of severe complications from the infection, a study has suggested.

The approach could save lives, according to Swedish researchers, who combined the unique molecular signature of sepsis with machine-learning to predict a person’s risk of organ failure and death.

Sepsis is life-threatening and can be difficult to spot, accounting for about 11 million deaths each year — almost 20 percent of all global deaths.