Purpura Fulminans Due toStaphylococcus aureus

Abstract
Background. Purpura fulminans is an acute illness commonly associated with meningococcemia or invasive streptococcal disease, and it is typically characterized by disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) and purpuric skin lesions. In this article, we report the first 5 cases (to our knowledge) of purpura fulminans directly associated with Staphylococcus aureus strains that produce high levels of the superantigens toxic shock syndrome toxin-1 (TSST-1), staphylococcal enterotoxin serotype B (SEB), or staphylococcal enterotoxin serotype C (SEC).