Sepsis is the most frequent cause of death in critically ill patients in non-coronary care Intensive Care Units in the developed world. Microcirculatory disturbances are central to the development of the disorder, leading to organ dysfunction, multi-organ failure and fatal outcome.

In particular the intestinal microcirculation is impaired early in the course of the disease. This may result in a breakdown of the gut barrier function with translocation of bacteria and their toxins into the systemic circulation, thus sustaining a "gut derived" septic state. Therefore, the impaired intestinal microcirculation has been suggested to act as the "motor of multiple organ failure" in sepsis.

The aim of the project is to evaluate a new diagnostic tool and the impact of APC administration on the intestinal microcirculation in patients with severe sepsis and compare the findings with septic patients who are not candidates for APC therapy and healthy patients post bowel surgery using an innovative diagnostic tool (side stream dark-field imaging, SDF).