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Sepsis is a life-threatening syndrome characterized by a dysregulated host response to an infection that may evolve rapidly into septic shock and multiple organ failure. Management of sepsis relies on the early recognition and diagnosis of infection and the providing of adequate and prompt antibiotic therapy and organ support. A novel protein biomarker, the pancreatic stone protein (PSP), has recently been studied as a biomarker of sepsis and the available evidence suggests that it has a higher diagnostic performance for the identification of infection than the most used available biomarkers and adds prognostic value. This review summarizes the clinical evidence available for PSP in the diagnosis and prognosis of sepsis.

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has placed great strain on the most developed of health care systems, especially in the context of critical care. Although co-infections with cytomegalovirus (CMV) are frequent in the critically ill due to underlying immune suppression of multiple causes, the impact on COVID-19 patients remains unclear. Furthermore, severe COVID-19 has recently been associated with significant immune suppression, and this may in turn impact CMV reactivation, possibly contributing to clinical course. Nevertheless, multiple confounding factors in these patients will certainly challenge upcoming research. The authors present a case series of five patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) in the context of respiratory failure due to severe COVID-19. All patients evolved with CMV reactivation during ICU stay.