Endocan: A Review of a Promising Sepsis Marker Affecting Disease Activity and Outcome

Abstract: Sepsis remains one of the main diagnoses leading to repeated admissions of critically ill patients and continues to have a high mortality rate of up to 50%, despite advances in medical diagnostics and care.
Studies have shown that endocan contributes to the dysregulation of the normal inflammatory response by enhancing vascular permeability and increasing pro-inflammatory cytokines, leading to enhanced leukocyte migration and accumulation in the endothelial cell barrier. Endocan levels have also been shown to correlate with disease severity, suggesting its utility in monitoring disease progression.
Additional studies involving larger numbers of patients are necessary to further investigate the role of endocan in sepsis and its eventual use in clinical management. The purpose of this review is to identify and discuss the promising relevance of endocan in sepsis.

Keywords: Biological Markers, Intensive Care Units, Mortality, Sepsis