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Toxic shock syndrome
Toxic shock syndrome (TSS) is a disease caused by bacteria. It can be fatal, but it’s very rare. One way you can get toxic shock syndrome is by leaving a tampon in too long.
You should change your tampon regularly every three to four hours. You should also use the least absorbent tampons you can – so don’t use a ‘super’ tampon if you’ve only got a light flow.
Symptoms of TSS
If you show the following symptoms, it's possible that you are suffering from toxic shock syndrome.
- Sudden high fever
- Headache
- Diarrhoea
- Aching muscles
- Faintness and tiredness
- Passing less urine than normal
- A rash like sunburn appearing within 24 hours
- Bloodshot eyes
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If you’ve had a tampon in for a long time, perhaps because you forgot to change it, and you get any three of these symptoms, call your doctor immediately. Stop using tampons and switch to pads.