Newspaper article

By: Nan Robertson

Date: September 19, 1982

Source: Robertson, Nan. "Toxic Shock." The New York Times, September 19, 1982, 30.

About the Author: Nan Robertson (1926–) worked for The New York Times for more than thirty years in Washington, Paris, and New York. She was a reporter and a feature writer. Before that, Robertson was employed by the New York Herald Tribune European Edition and the Milwaukee Journal. Robertson taught at the University of Maryland after retiring. ﾀ

Introduction

Toxic shock syndrome (TSS) is a rare disease mainly seen in menstruating women who use high-absorbency tampons. It is caused by a bacterial strain of staph. The disease came to the public's attention in the 1980s when women began contracting it. Some victims died. Robertson cites a June 1980 study by the Centers for Disease Control...