The Duration of Hypotension before the Initiation of Antibiotic Treatment Is a Critical Determinant of Survival in a Murine Model of<i>Escherichia coli</i>Septic Shock: Association with Serum Lactate and Inflammatory Cytokine Levels

The timing of antibiotic treatment relative to hypotension is closely associated with survival in this murine model of septic shock. Delay in antibiotic treatment results in the persistence of inflammatory/stress markers even after antibiotic treatment is initiated.