Rapid blood test for children that could spot sepsis in just 15 minutes is trialled by NHS
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A rapid blood test for children to help diagnose light-threatening conditions such as sepsis and meningitis is being trialled in the NHS.
The 15-minute test can quickly inform medics whether young patients are suffering from a bacterial or viral infection.
Currently doctors must rely on blood test results, which can take several hours and require analysis in a lab.
This new technology, however, can rapidly indicate whether a patient would benefit from immediate antibiotics.
Experts said the test could have a ‘massive impact’ on the emergency care of children, especially in situations where treatment is urgently needed.
In sepsis cases, for example, patients should get antibiotics within one to six hours of arriving at hospital. If it is not treated early, it can turn into septic shock and cause organs to fail.
Doctors taking part in the trial say they have already seen the benefits and believe it could save lives.
In one case, a child with meningococcal meningitis was treated much more quickly and another with sepsis started antibiotics straight away.
Every year, around 25,000 children in the UK are affected by sepsis. The new blood test could rapidly tell medics if they need antibiotics, which could save their life (stock image)
NHS England has funded a trial of the technology in three emergency departments at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool, St Mary’s Hospital in London and Great North Children’s Hospital in Newcastle.
Enitan Carrol, professor of paediatric infection at the University of Liverpool, who is leading the project, said: ‘Many of the children who come to hospital have a fever and this test can quickly distinguish between a minor viral illness like a cold, or a more serious infection.
‘Our study is investigating whether this definitive test for a bacterial or viral infection will be useful in helping doctors make faster decisions and reducing the use of unnecessary antibiotics – all of which is better for patients and the NHS.’
The Daily Mail started its End The Sepsis Scandal campaign in 2016 to raise awareness of symptoms among patients and staff in an attempt to reduce the number of missed cases of sepsis.
In 2023, a damning report warned that hundreds of children are still dying needlessly from sepsis every year.
Dr Ron Daniels, founder and chief medical officer of the UK Sepsis Trust, said the test has the potential to ‘save dozens of young lives every year’.
He said severe infections and sepsis are ‘one of the greatest acute illness burdens facing our NHS’, while resistance to antibiotics, which is largely caused by overprescribing, also affects thousands of patients.
‘Using antibiotics more wisely – meaning both withholding them in people who won’t benefit and giving them urgently to people who need the most – has never been more important,’ he added.
‘Although the study is in children, previous studies have shown its performance to be even better in adults, meaning there is potential opportunity across all ages.
‘There is an urgent need to change the way we bring novel and rapid diagnostics such as this into the NHS.’
Professor Simon Kenny, national clinical director for children and young people at NHS England, said: ‘Innovations like the 15-minute blood test speed up diagnosis and allow focused treatment, as well as freeing up resources to treat more patients, so it’s great we’re able to trial the test this winter when the NHS is at its busiest.’
Dr Emma Lim, consultant paediatrician at the Great North Children’s Hospital in Newcastle, said: ‘Every year, thousands of worried parents bring their children with fever to hospital.
‘Often, it turns out to be nothing serious — but it’s hard to know in the moment.
‘A quick and reliable test like this can help doctors make faster decisions, and reduce the need for unnecessary antibiotics, which is better for patients, parents and the NHS.’
The study looking at the MeMed BV test will run until March.
Sepsis is a life-threatening condition caused when the body releases chemicals to fight an infection.
These chemicals damage the body's own tissues and organs and can lead to shock, organ failure and death.
Organ failure and death are more likely if sepsis is not recognized early and treated immediately.
Sepsis infects an estimated 55,000 Australians each year, killing between 5,000 and 9,000 making it more than four times deadlier than the road toll.
The symptoms can look like gastro or flu and can become deadly, rapidly.
The six major signs of something potentially deadly can be identified by the acronym 'SEPSIS':
- Slurred speech or confusion, lethargy, disorientation
- Extreme shivering or muscle pain, fever or low temperature
- Pressing a rash doesn't make it fade
- Severe breathlessness, rapid breathing
- Inability to pass urine for several hours
- Skin that's mottled or discoloured
Children may also show convulsions or fits, and a rash that doesn't fade when you press it - and more than 40 per cent of cases occur in children under five.
Anyone who develops these symptoms should seek medical help urgently — and ask doctors: 'Could this be sepsis?'
Sepsis is a leading cause of avoidable death killing about 10,000 Australians each year
The early symptoms of sepsis can be easily confused with more mild conditions, making it difficult to diagnose.
A high temperature (fever), chills and shivering, a fast heartbeat and rapid breathing are also indicators.
A patient can rapidly deteriorate if sepsis is missed early on, so quick diagnosis and treatment is vital – yet this rarely happens.
In the early stages, sepsis can be mistaken for a chest infection, flu or upset stomach.
It is most common and dangerous in older adults, pregnant women, children younger than one, people with chronic conditions or those who have weakened immune systems.
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