toxic shock syndrome

toxic shock syndrome   n.   Abbr. TSS An acute infection characterized by high fever, a sunburnlike rash, vomiting, and diarrhea, followed in severe cases by shock, that is caused by a toxin-producing strain of the common bacterium Staphylococcus aureus, occurring chiefly among young menstruating women who use vaginal tampons.

Main Entry: toxic shock syndrome
Function: noun
: an acute and sometimes fatal disease that is characterized by fever, nausea, diarrhea, diffuse erythema, and shock, thatis associated especially with the presence of a bacterium of the genus Staphylococcus (S. aureus), and that occurs especially in menstruating females using tampons called also toxicshock

toxic shock syndrome n.
Abbr. TSS
An acute infection characterized by high fever, a sunburnlike rash, vomiting, and diarrhea, followed in severe cases by shock, that is caused by a toxin-producing strain of Staphylococcus aureus, occurring chiefly among young menstruating women who use vaginal tampons. Also called toxic shock.

toxic shock syndrome   (tŏk'sĭk)  Pronunciation Key  An acute infection characterized by high fever, a sunburnlike rash, vomiting, and diarrhea, followed in severe cases by shock, that is caused by a toxin-producing strain of the common bacterium Staphylococcus aureus. It occurs chiefly among menstruating women who use tampons.