Objective To approach the effect of Shenfu injection (SFI) and conventional early goal-directed therapy (EGDT) on organ functions and outcomes of septic shock patients. Methods Eighty-four cases conformed to the criteria for the diagnosis of septic shock admitted to Department of Critical Care Medicine of Xuzhou Central Hospital were randomly divided into conventional treatment group (42 cases), and SFI treatment group (42 cases). Conventional treatment was given in the two groups;in SFI treatment group, SFI 100 mL was additionally given by trace continuous intravenous pump 20 mL/h, twice daily for 7 days. Before and after treatment for 1, 6, 12, 24, 48, 72 hours, the levels of hemodynamic status, lactic acid and dosage of vasoactive drugs used, organ function, acute physiology and chronic health evaluation Ⅱ (APACHE Ⅱ) score, sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score, the time of weaning from ventilator, the length of stay in intensive care unit (ICU), time without organ failure and 28-day mortality rate were observed. Results Compared with those before treatment, after treatment in the two groups, the mean arterial pressure (MAP), cardiac index (CI) and systemic vascular resistance index (SVRI) were increased, while the levels of heart rate (HR) and lactate were decreased (all P<0.05). Compared with conventional treatment group, in SFI treatment group, after treatment for 24 hours, the MAP level was increased significantly [mmHg (1 mmHg=0.133 kPa):75.40±9.75 vs. 71.80±11.08, P < 0.05], that continued to 48 hours; after treatment for 6 hours, the CI level was increased obviously (mL·s-1·m-2: 75.18±34.84 vs. 67.35±39.34, P < 0.05) , that continued to 48 hours; after treatment for 6 hours, the lactic acid level was decreased markedly (mmol/L: 2.03±0.82 vs. 2.24±0.97, P < 0.05);in the comparison of dosage of vasoactive drugs used between two groups, the difference was not significant (all P >0.05). Compared with that before treatment, in the conventional treatment group after treatment for 1 and 3 days, gamma glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT) was increased, on the 5th day it began to decrease, reaching its minimum on the 7th day (U/L:26.75±16.74 vs. 46.96±25.85);while in SFI treatment group, GGT was increased after treatment for 1 day, on 3rd day it began to decrease, reaching its lowest level on the 7th day (U/L:22.41±17.87 vs. 51.23±27.74);aspartate aminotransferase (AST), total bilirubin (TBil), oxygenation index (PaO2/FiO2) were increased after the treatment for 1, 3, 5, 7 days, and blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatinine (Cr) were decreased at different time points after treatment. In the conventional treatment group, the precursor protein (PA) was decreased after treatment for 1, 3, 5 days, on the 7th day it was increased (mg/L:134.20±63.44 vs. 115.70±45.96);while in SFI treatment group, after the treatment for 1 days and 3 days, it was decreased, on the 5th day it was increased, reaching its highest level on the 7th day (mg/L:145.40±59.75 vs. 108.20±54.34). Compared with those before treatment, after treatment for 1, 3, 5, 7 days, APACHEⅡscore and SOFA score were decreased in the two groups, but there was no statistically significant difference in APACHEⅡscore between the two groups, in SFI treatment group after treatment for 3 days, SOFA score was significantly lower than that of the conventional treatment group (6.31±3.86 vs. 7.14±4.03, P<0.05), that continued to the 7th day after treatment. In SFI treatment group, the time for weaning from ventilator (days:7.5±3.5 vs. 9.1±3.2) and the length of stay in ICU (days: 16.1±9.2 vs. 18.7±8.3) were significantly shorter than those in conventional treatment group (both P<0.05). There were no significant differences in time without organ failure (days:14.5±4.2 vs. 15.3±3.1) and 28-day mortality rate [28.6%(12/42) vs. 31.0%(13/42)] between SFI group and conventional group (both P>0.05). Conclusion The combined use of SFI and EGDT can improve hemodynamics, reduce damage to vital organs, and shorten the times for ventilation and stay in ICU in septic shock patients.