SIGNIFICANCE OF SERUM NITRIC OXIDE IN CRITICALLY ILL SEPTIC PATIENTS

Abstract

Severe sepsis and septic shock are characterized by hemodynamic derangement and instability, in the form of tachycardia, decrease systolic, diastolic, and mean arterial blood pressure, myocardial depression and disease cardiac output, which affect the vital organs autoregulation ending in multiple organ dysfunction syndrome if not early, and appropriately managed. This study was directed to estimate and study the serum levels of nitrate and nitrite in critically ill patients with sepsis, in an attempt to establish correlation between nitric oxide production and progression of the sepsis process to help in prediction ofthe clinical progression of such cases. This study was conducted on 80 critically ill patients with sepsis, divided into two equal groups, each of 40 patients, group 1 for severe sepsis patients, and group II for septic shock patients, and twenty healthy individuals served as control. Statistical analysis of results of this study, revealed the

presence of serum nitrate and nitrite in considerable concentrations in healthy individuals, pr ving its role in homeostasis of vascular tone in normal condition, also the presence of serum nitrate and nitrite in higher . ' concentrations in group I and II which were higher in the