In a large trial of seriously ill sepsis patients, giving a higher dose of the immune‑boosting peptide thymosin‑alpha‑1 together with the anti‑inflammatory drug ulinastatin for a week cut death rates and improved health scores, while the standard dose showed no benefit. The benefit seemed to depend on using a double dose (about 3 mg daily).

To evaluate the efficacy of treatment of severe sepsis by combining anti-inflammatory and immune-enhancing agents. Multiple-center, prospective, randomized, controlled designs. Cases were from surgical or general ICU of 26 university teaching hospitals. Totally, 433 adult patients developing severe sepsis with Marshall score 5-20 were enrolled. Patients received either standard treatment based on SSC direction (as group control), or additional Ulinastatin (urinary trypsin inhibitor) 300 K units per day+thymosin alpha1 (Maipuxin) 1.6 mg per day for 7 days (as treatment group 1, adopted in the first trial), or double dosage of the above agents (as treatment group 2, adopted in the second trial). The outcome of 28 and 90 days, APACHEII and Marshall score, monocyte HLA-DR/CD14+ at several points until 28 days, and the lengths of ICU stay, antibiotics usage and mechanical ventilation were determinated. In the first trial (91 cases), there was no significant difference in variables between treatment group 1 and control at 28 days. In the second trial (342 cases), the mortality of treatment group 2 decreased from 38.32% to 25.14% (P=0.0088), compared with group control at 28 days, and from 52.10% to 37.14% (P=0.0054) on 90 days. APACHEIIalso decreased from 14.32 to 12.70 (P=0.0384) and monocyte HLA-DR/CD14+ increased from 40.13% to 51.65% (P=0.0092) on 28 days in treatment group 2. Other variables had no significant differences between two groups. Treatment by the combining anti-inflammatory and immune enhancing agents can significantly improve the outcome of severe sepsis. The efficacy of this therapy seems to be dose dependent on.