Antioxidants as a therapy for sepsis-induced organ dysfunction
In view of the damaging effects of tissue hypoxia and oxidative stress,
there has been interest over many decades in the use of antioxidants as
a treatment for sepsis. The antioxidant N-acetylcysteine, which has both
antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, showed some promise in
experimental studies, but clinical studies have yielded largely
disappointing findings (Chertoff, 2018). The antioxidant tempol has been
shown to reduce the level of AKI in a porcine model of sepsis (Matejovic
et al., 2005), but its effects have not been examined clinically.
Recently, however, there has been increasing interest in the effects of
vitamin C as a treatment for sepsis.