Cotton fever

Cotton fever is a condition that indicates as a fever that follows intravenous drug use where cotton is used to filter the drugs. The condition derives from an endotoxin released by the bacteria Pantoea agglomerans which lives in cotton plants. Cotton fever is a condition that indicates as a fever that follows intravenous drug use where cotton is used to filter the drugs. The condition derives from an endotoxin released by the bacteria Pantoea agglomerans which lives in cotton plants. A condition similar to cotton fever was described in the early 1940s among cotton-farm workers. The term cotton fever was coined in 1975 after the syndrome was recognized in intravenous drug users. Signs and symptoms of cotton fever usually appear within 20 minutes after injection, but may come on gradually over the course of a few hours. In addition to fever, they may include headaches, malaise, chills, nausea, extreme joint and muscle pain, a sudden onset of dull, sharp, piercing or burning back and kidney pain, tremors, anxiety, shortness of breath, and tachycardia. The fever itself usually reaches 38.5–40.3 °C (101.3–104.5 °F) during the full onset. Extreme chills and uncontrollable shivering are common. The symptoms of cotton fever resemble those of sepsis and patients can be initially misdiagnosed upon admission to a hospital.