Surviving Sepsis Campaign: international guidelines for management of sepsis and septic shock 2026

We acknowledge the important contributions to the guideline from members of the patient and family subgroup, many of whom have lived experience with sepsis and have dedicated themselves to improving the care for those with sepsis worldwide. Members include Dana Mirman, Jennifer Brod, Jackie Duda (Sepsis Alliance advisory board member), Mick O'Dowd (Sepsis Australia Consumer Partner and Advocacy Program), Orlaith Staunton (founder of END SEPSIS, and in memory of Rory Staunton), Idelette Numa (coordinator of patient platform Sepsis en daarna/co-founder of Sepsis Nederland), and others. We would also like to acknowledge the support of the following: Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM) staff members in supporting the guidelines development process, including Vishakha Kumar, Hariyali Patel, and Dan Woznica. The authors would like to acknowledge Dr. Prescott and Dr. Antonelli, the Co-chairs; Dr. Derde and Dr. Rochwerg, the Co-vice-chairs; Dr. Alhazzani and Dr. Hylander Moller, the Methods Co-Leads; Dr. De Waele, Dr. Gershengorn, Dr. Hodgson, Dr. McIntyre, Dr. Mer, and Dr. Oczkowski, the Subgroup Heads; and Dr. Alshamsi, Dr. Belley-Cote, Dr. Dionne, Dr. Honarmand, Dr. Hylander Moller, and Dr. Nunnally, the Subgroup Methods Leads, for their invaluable contributions to the development of the Surviving Sepsis Campaign Adult Guidelines. Special thanks also go to Dr. Evans and Dr. Kesecioglu, the Conflict of Interest Co-Chairs, for overseeing and managing potential conflicts of interest to ensure transparency throughout the process. These guidelines have been endorsed by the following sponsoring societies: African Federation for Emergency Medicine, African Sepsis Alliance, American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST), American Thoracic Society, Asia Pacific Sepsis Alliance, Asian Society of Emergency Medicine, Association De Medicina Intensiva Brasileira, Australian and New Zealand Intensive Care Society, Canadian Critical Care Society, Chinese Society of Critical Care Medicine, European Respiratory Society, European Society for Emergency Medicine, European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, with recognition that successful implementation requires coordinated approaches that align sepsis protocols with antimicrobial stewardship objectives at the institutional level, German Sepsis Society, Indian Society of Critical Care Medicine, Infectious Diseases Society of America, Japanese Society of Intensive Care Medicine, Latin American Sepsis Institute, Society for Academic Emergency Medicine, Society of Hospital Medicine, Surgical Infection Society, World Federation of Critical Care Nurses, and World Federation of Intensive and Critical Care Medicine.