Despite the significant progress of the last decades in the investigation of sepsis mechanisms, mortality due to severe sepsis remains high. Recent data pinpoint endothelial dysfunction as a
very important pathogenetic factor. Endothelial activation often precedes endothelial dysfunction,and alarge number of endothelial cell (EC) active molecules have been investigated as potential biomarkers for the early diagnosis and prognostication of sepsis.
These biomarkers include regulators of endothelial activation,adhesion molecules, as well as mediators of permeability, vasomotor tone, and coagulation. However, as yet there is no generally
acceptable way of either diagnosing endothelial dysfunction at its early phase or associating the latter with the septic process.