Abstract
In sepsis, anticholinergic dysregulation may result in encephalopathy or delirium
during severe illness, either as a result of central inflammation or because of exposure
to medications with anticholinergic activity. In this retrospective study, we determined
the magnitude of anticholinergic drug exposure in 75 children with severe sepsis.
We found that exposure over the first 5 days was high—median (interquartile range)
daily anticholinergic drug scale score 4 (2–5)—and associated with higher vasoactive
scores and death. We conclude that anticholinergic drug exposure is significant in
severe sepsis, which means it may be a modifiable factor that should be studied further.
Keywords
anticholinergic - delirium - sepsis - sepsis-associated encephalopathy
