According to The Merck Manual, there are 200,000 cases of septic shock with a 45 percent mortality rate every year. This means that 90,000 people die from septic shock yearly. Septic shock is a term used to describe severe sepsis or infection, accompanied by at least one organ failure and life-threatening low blood pressure. Causes of septic shock include gram-positive bacteria, gram-negative bacteria and fungi.
Gram-Positive Bacteria
Gram-positive bacteria are so-called because of their appearance under the microscope. Toxic shock syndrome is a unique syndrome that is caused by toxins released from gram-positive bacteria. Staphylococcus is the bacteria that cause severe shock in women who wear tampons. The mechanism of bacterial toxin entry into the bloodstream is thought to be from small tears in the cervix and vaginal wall secondary to the use of tampons. According to The Merck Manual, 15 percent of toxic shock cases occur in postpartum women. Mortality from toxic shock syndrome is less than 3 percent.
Gram-Negative Bacteria
Gram-negative bacteria can lead to overwhelming infection. Gram-negative bacteria are often found in hospital-acquired pneumonia, infection of the abdomen and infection of the kidneys. When gram-negative bacteria enter the bloodstream in patients, the bacteria release toxins that cause an inflammatory response system-wide. This inflammation can cause organ failure. For instance, when the gram-negative bacteria of pneumonia release toxins, acute respiratory distress syndrome, or ARDS, can occur, causing the lungs to fill with fluid and making breathing very difficult. The inflammatory response can also cause disseminated intravascular coagulation, or DIC. This term describes the effect that inflammation has on the blood. The clotting factors of the blood become abnormally active and small clots form throughout the body. Over a very short time, the clotting factors are "used up" and the patient is at risk for bleeding.
Fungi
According to The Merck Manual, fungi are unusual causes of septic shock. Patients who acquire a fungal infection that causes septic shock are usually severely immune compromised. Fungi are opportunistic bacteria and need a host that cannot fight the infection. Candida is a fungus that commonly complicates the treatment of patients in the intensive care unit. Pneumocystis jiroveci, formerly known as Pneumocystis carini, is an opportunistic fungal infection that causes pneumonia in transplant patients as well as in those with advanced cancer and AIDS.
