How does Staphylococcus aureus cause purpura fulminans?
There are many varieties of Staphylococcus aureus—we call them strains. Some strains make toxins (poisons) that they secrete into their surroundings. These toxins have the ability to cause very high fever, significant drop in blood pressure and other bad effects on humans. One of these toxins identified in the Schlievert laboratory in 1980 is toxic shock syndrome toxin. This toxin is made by about 5% of all Staphylococcus aureus. This toxin causes all of the tampon (menstruation-associated) cases of toxic shock syndrome. Toxic shock syndrome is characterized by high fever (>102OF) and significant drop in blood pressure (this means the person may faint or have dizziness upon standing). There are two other toxins that are related to toxic shock syndrome toxin that can cause toxic shock syndrome. They are called enterotoxin B and enterotoxin C. All three toxins have the same effects on humans—to cause fever and drop in blood pressure. Purpura fulminans means that the disease has a bloody
