Djillali Annane, Alain Renault, Christian Brun-Buisson, Bruno Megarbane, Jean-Pierre Quenot, Shidasp Siami, Alain Cariou, Xavier Forceville, Carole Schwebel, Claude Martin, Jean-François Timsit, Benoît Misset, Mohamed Ali Benali, Gwenhael Colin, Bertrand Souweine, Karim Asehnoune, Emmanuelle Mercier, Loïc Chimot, Claire Charpentier, Bruno François, Thierry Boulain, Franck Petitpas, Jean-Michel Constantin, Gilles Dhonneur, François Baudin, Alain Combes, Julien Bohé, Jean-François Loriferne, Roland Amathieu, Fabrice Cook, Michel Slama, Olivier Leroy, Gilles Capellier, Auguste Dargent, Tarik Hissem, Virginie Maxime, Eric Bellissant
BACKGROUND: Septic shock is characterized by dysregulation of the host response to infection, with circulatory, cellular, and metabolic abnormalities. We hypothesized that therapy with hydrocortisone plus fludrocortisone or with drotrecogin alfa (activated), which can modulate the host response, would improve the clinical outcomes of patients with septic shock. METHODS: In this multicenter, double-blind, randomized trial with a 2-by-2 factorial design, we evaluated the effect of hydrocortisone-plus-fludrocortisone therapy, drotrecogin alfa (activated), the combination of the three drugs, or their respective placebos...
March 1, 2018: New England Journal of Medicine