More often than not, a blood infection is believed to be sepsis, but the actual term for a blood infection is septicemia. However, while the two are often interchanged, they aren’t actually the same thing. Septicemia is a very serious bloodstream infection, while sepsis is a severe complication of septicemia.
A blood infection – septicemia – happens when a bacterial infection contaminates the bloodstream from another area in the body, such as the skin, bladder, kidneys or lungs, which are often the most common areas that get an infection. The main reason why blood infections are considered quite dangerous is because once the bacteria creates toxins, these are distributed by the bloodstream through the veins and all throughout the body, spreading the infection everywhere.
Usually, a blood infection needs to be treated in the hospital because if it goes untreated or unattended, it can eventually turn into sepsis, which can be fatal. Notably, symptoms of septicemia may come on quite suddenly and progress quite quickly as well, which is why it’s important to know the symptoms that come along with this type of medical condition.
Here are 10 signs that you may have a blood infection.
1. High Fever
A fever occurs when the temperature of the body goes higher than normal. Although it depends on the person, it is considered a fever when the temperature reaches 100.4°F, or 38°C, and above. A fever occurs when the body is fighting off an infection, and it’s the immune system’s response by increasing the body’s temperature in an attempt to kill of the infection or illness. When it comes to a blood infection, the fever tends to be very high and very persistent, which can be dangerous if it doesn’t go down over time. If the fever is also accompanied by other symptoms, such as body aches, chills or shaking, dehydration, seizures, and especially if it doesn’t want to go down with medication, call your doctor immediately or head to the nearest emergency room for proper diagnosis, care and treatment.
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