Mottling reduction in the early phases of profound septic shock

Excerpt

We read with great interest the study by Dumas et al. reporting the prognostic value of skin mottling on mortality in a cohort of patients with septic shock [1]. We congratulate the authors on emphasising the utility of this simple bedside clinical tool. In this single-centre observational study, 14-day and ICU mortality increased with the degree of mottling present 6 h after initial resuscitation. A decrease in mottling score during resuscitation was associated with a significant mortality benefit after adjustment for the SOFA score. Traditional resuscitation methods used were in keeping with international sepsis guidelines, the mainstay of which are fluid resuscitation, vasopressors and inotropes. …