[Is the time ripe for cytosorb].

Hemofiltration with Cytosorb can reduce cytokines in sepsis. Since cytokines are involved in the development of vasodilatatory shock in sepsis, their reduction might improve the chance of survival in this condition. In spite of the CE-approval of Cytosorb clinical efficacy has not been proved so far. Other techniques reducing cytokines by direct or indirect manners failed to prove an influence on sepsis mortality. Moreover, the nonspecific elimination of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines may result in different clinical effects. Benefits and risks of nonspecific cytokine elimination may be determined by the interaction of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines. Therefore, the usefulness of cytokine elimination using Cytosorb cannot be estimated without clinical data. The application of cytosorb in life threatening septic shock should be accompanied by a critical discussion of the limits of these curing trials. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.