Toxic Shock Syndrome: Symptoms

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Symptoms

The rapid development of symptoms is one of the most important clues that you may need immediate medical care for toxic shock syndrome (TSS).

Toxic shock symptoms range in severity, depending on the strep or staph bacteria involved.

General symptoms of toxic shock syndrome include:

• Flu-like symptoms, such as muscle aches and pains, stomach cramps, a headache, or a sore throat. The flu-like symptoms of TSS are common to many illnesses, but they develop much more quickly and are more severe than symptoms caused by a less serious illness.
• Sudden fever over .
• Vomiting and diarrhea.
• A rash that looks like a sunburn.
• Signs of shock, including low blood pressure and rapid heartbeat, often with lightheadedness, fainting, nausea, vomiting, or restlessness and confusion.
• Conjunctivitis (pinkeye).
• Pain at the site of an infection (if a wound or injury to the skin is involved).
• Involvement of more than one organ system, most commonly the lungs and kidneys.
• Blood infection (sepsis) that affects the entire body.
• Skin tissue death (necrosis), which occurs early in the syndrome.
• Skin tissue shedding, which occurs during recovery.

Strep nonmenstrual TSS. Symptoms typically develop:

• In women who have recently given birth, from 2 or 3 days up to several weeks after delivery.
• In people who have infected surgical wounds, from 2 days to 1 week after surgery.
• In people with respiratory infections, from 2 to 6 weeks after respiratory symptoms begin.

Staph menstrual TSS. Symptoms typically develop 3 to 5 days after a woman starts her period, if she is using tampons.

Staph nonmenstrual TSS. Symptoms typically develop as soon as 12 hours after a surgical procedure, particularly those in which surgical packing is used, such as a rhinoplasty.

Last updated:	March 03, 2008
Author:	Maria G. Essig, MS, ELS
Reviewed By:	Anne C. Poinier, MD - Internal Medicine, Dennis L. Stevens, MD, PhD - Internal Medicine, Infectious Diseases
Editors:	Susan Van Houten, RN, BSN, MBA, Tracy Landauer