The prognosis of anthrax is directly related to the availability of timely and effective diagnosis and treatment. Patients with anthrax are often critically ill and can suffer from sepsis and infectious shock, and occasionally meningitis, and if not diagnosed and rescued in time, they often die from respiratory and circulatory failure after the onset of acute symptoms.
If treated promptly and aggressively, almost all patients with cutaneous anthrax survive; more than half of those with inhalational anthrax survive; and 60% of those with gastrointestinal anthrax survive.