Septicaemia
/ˌsɛptɪˈsiːmiə/noun
A serious bloodstream infection caused by harmful microorganisms or their toxins.
Did you know?The term ultimately comes from Greek words for “decay” and “blood,” and in modern medicine its older “blood poisoning” sense has been replaced by more precise terms like sepsis and bacteremia.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
sēptikos
“causing putrefaction; rotten”
Ancient Greek
Greek
sēpsis
“putrefaction, decay”
Late Latin
Latin
septicaemia
“a putrid condition of the blood”
19th Century
English
septicaemia
“blood poisoning; infection of the bloodstream”
Modern English
English
septicaemia
“a serious bloodstream infection”