What do chills feel like with sepsis?

A person may shiver forcefully, have cold or clammy skin, and alternate between feeling chilled and overheated. They may also develop fast breathing, a racing heartbeat, severe weakness, confusion, dizziness, or difficulty staying awake. Sepsis can follow an infection in the lungs, urinary system, skin, or another body area.

Chills do not diagnose sepsis, but a sudden combination of shaking and rapid deterioration is a medical warning. The person may not have a high temperature, particularly when the illness is advanced or the immune response is altered.

If sepsis is possible, call emergency services without delay and describe the infection symptoms, shaking, breathing, alertness, and any recent procedure or illness. Keep the person safe and warm, stay with them, and do not make them eat or drink if they are confused or drowsy. Do not drive yourself if faint or severely unwell.

Emergency help is needed for confusion, slurred speech, fainting, severe breathlessness, mottled or very pale skin, a seizure, little or no urine, or a person who is difficult to wake. Rapid worsening after an infection should be treated as urgent even if the temperature is normal.

After urgent assessment, ask what infection may be involved, which changes should prompt immediate return, how medicines should be taken, and how to monitor hydration and alertness at home.