Toxic shock syndrome
When to get medical advice
TSS is a medical emergency.
While these symptoms could be due an illness other than TSS, it's important to contact your GP, local out of hours service or NHS 111 as soon as possible if you have a combination of these symptoms.
It's very unlikely that you have TSS, but these symptoms shouldn't be ignored.
Go to your nearest accident and emergency (A&E) department or call 999 for an ambulance immediately if you have severe symptoms or your symptoms are getting rapidly worse.
If you're wearing a tampon, remove it straight away. Also tell your doctor if you've been using a tampon, recently suffered a burn or skin injury, or if you have a skin infection such as a boil .
If your GP or doctor suspects you have TSS, you'll be referred to hospital immediately.
Medically Reviewed by a doctor on 21 Dec 2018
Introduction
Find out what toxic shock syndrome (TSS) is, what the symptoms are, how it happens and how to reduce your chances of getting it.
Symptoms of toxic shock syndrome
The symptoms of TSS start suddenly and getworse quickly. Symptoms can include: a high temperature (fever) of 39C (102.2F) or above flu-like symptoms , such as a Headaches , chills, muscle aches,
When to get medical advice
TSS is a medical emergency. While these symptoms could be due an illness other than TSS, it's important to contact your GP, local out of hours service or NHS 111 as soon as possible if you have a co
Treatment for toxic shock syndrome
If you have TSS, you'll need to be admitted to hospital and may need to be treated in an intensive care unit . Treatmentmay involve: antibiotics to treat the infection in some cases, pooled immu
Causes of toxic shock syndrome
TSS iscaused by either Staphylococcus or Streptococcus bacteria. Thesebacteria normally live harmlessly on the skin, nose or mouth, but if they get deeper into the body they can release toxins that d
Preventing toxic shock syndrome
The following measures can help reduce your risk of TSS: treat wounds and burns quickly and get medical advice if you develop signs of an infection, such as swelling, redness and increasing pain al
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