Sepsis in the United States
Sepsis is a life-threatening emergency that happens when a body's response to an infection damages vital organs and, often, causes death. It is one of the most expensive conditions treated in hospitals in the United States.
This visualization presents data from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project on—
- Morbidity and in-hospital mortality related to sepsis
- Outcomes of sepsis hospitalizations, by patient characteristics
Morbidity and In-Hospital Mortality Related to Sepsis
Sepsis caseloads in inpatient settings at non-federal acute care hospitals in the United States increased from 1.8 million in 2016 to 2.5 million in 2021, a 39.8 percent increase in the number of stays over 5 years.
This data visualization presents 2016 to 2021 data on—
- Inpatient stays and emergency department utilization for sepsis
- Inpatient days for sepsis
- Hospital and emergency department costs for sepsis
- Hospital readmissions for sepsis
- Post-acute care transitions after a sepsis hospitalization
- In-hospital mortality
Outcomes of Sepsis Hospitalizations, by Patient Characteristics
Differences in the outcomes of sepsis hospitalizations exist across subpopulations of sepsis patients.
This data visualization presents outcomes of sepsis hospitalizations in 2021 including
- Average length of stay
- Average total hospital cost
- In-hospital mortality
Outcomes are presented by patient characteristics for
- All sepsis hospitalizations
- Maternal sepsis hospitalizations
- Pediatric sepsis hospitalizations
- Neonatal sepsis hospitalizations
More Information on Sepsis and Methodology of the Visualization
More information on hospital care related to sepsis based on data from AHRQ's Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) and methodology for the estimates presented in this visualization is available from:
- Report to Congress: An Assessment of Sepsis in the United States and its Burden on Hospital Care
- Statistical Brief #306: Overview of Outcomes for Inpatient Stays Involving Sepsis, 2016–2021 (PDF, 1.1 MB)
- Statistical Brief #308: Rural and Urban Hospital Differences in Inpatient Stays Involving Sepsis, 2019 and 2021 (PDF, 1.2 MB)
- Statistical Brief #309: Racial and Ethnic Differences in Inpatient Stays Involving Sepsis, 2016–2021 (PDF, 876 KB)
- Statistical Brief #310: State Variation in Inpatient Stays Involving Sepsis, 2021 (PDF, 1.8 MB)
