Any wound other than a clean, minor cut is 'tetanus-prone'. Tetanus may occur after a seemingly trivial injury, such as from a rose thorn. It is also possible to have no obvious signs of injury.
Tetanus bacteria are common in soil, dust, and manure. The tetanus bacteria can infect a person even through a tiny scratch.
It's important to know that the size of the wound doesn't matter when it comes to tetanus. If you're concerned about the wound but have had a vaccine within the past 5 years, you can still go to the hospital to be safe.
If the injured person hasn't had a tetanus shot in the past five years and the wound is deep or dirty, your doctor may recommend a booster. The injured person should have the booster shot within 48 hours of the injury.
Symptoms of tetanus may not begin to appear until a week after the injury, so as a rule of thumb, try to get the tetanus booster shot within 48 hours of the injury.
The spasms can be so powerful that they tear the muscles or cause fractures of the spine. The time between infection and the first sign of symptoms is about 7 to 21 days. Most cases of tetanus in the United States occur in those who have not been vaccinated against the disease.
What does tetanus look like on the skin? Tetanus infections do not cause a rash and the wound will not show signs of tetanus. The first symptoms can take days, weeks, or even months to appear and usually start at the jaw. From the outside, tetanus may look like muscle tightness in the jaw, neck, and face.
Emergency tetanus shots
It is critical that you do so soon after being injured. A tetanus infection can enter the body through small cuts, scrapes, and scratches. If you're cut by a metallic or rusty object or suffer a deep wound, immediately consult a doctor about receiving a tetanus shot.
The likelihood of tetanus is greatest following deep, dirty puncture wounds where there is little bleeding and an absence of oxygen. But tetanus has occurred following other injuries such as burns, scratches, and slivers.
If your tetanus immunization is not up to date and the injury caused a break in your skin, you need a tetanus shot even if it is a small scratch or scrape.
Tetanus bacteria can also infect someone's body through breaks in the skin caused by: Clean superficial wounds (when only the topmost layer of skin is scraped off) Surgical procedures. Insect bites.
Types of tetanus vaccines
Careful cleaning of wounds, both deep and superficial, can substantially decrease the risk of tetanus. Protecting cleaned wounds from recontamination with dressings, and/or topical disinfectants also is important.
All wounds other than clean, minor cuts are considered 'tetanus prone'. If you get a wound and you haven't been immunised for tetanus in the last five years, visit your doctor as soon as possible. The best prevention against tetanus is immunisation.
About 30 people in the U.S get tetanus annually, and one or two out of 10 cases can be fatal. Tetanus-associated deaths almost always occur among unvaccinated people, or those with incomplete or unknown vaccination history.
The first symptoms of tetanus are usually stiffness and mild spasms in the jaw muscles. Left untreated, these symptoms can progress to a serious stage over the course of a few hours to a few days.
*Such as, but not limited to, wounds contaminated with dirt, feces, soil, and saliva; puncture wounds; avulsions; and wounds resulting from missiles, crushing, burns, and frostbite. † DTaP is recommended for children <7 years of age.
It shows signs of infection
Whether it's a surgical wound or one that seemed minor at first but is getting worse instead of better, any wound that's infected should be evaluated by a medical provider. Signs a wound may be infected include: Increasing pain or redness. Drainage or bleeding that won't stop.
Interestingly the primary site of entry of the infection, as in this case, might be quite superficial and the wound might have healed at the time of tetanus development.
There's no cure for tetanus. A tetanus infection requires emergency and long-term supportive care while the disease runs its course. Treatment consists of wound care, medications to ease symptoms and supportive care, usually in an intensive care unit.
Tetanus is acquired through infection of a cut or wound with the spores of the bacterium Clostridium tetani, and most cases occur within 14 days of infection. Tetanus cannot be transmitted from person to person. Tetanus can be prevented through immunization with tetanus-toxoid-containing vaccines (TTCV).
You should suspect tetanus if a cut or wound is followed by one or more of these symptoms: Stiffness of the neck, jaw, and other muscles, often accompanied by a sneering, grinning expression. Difficulty swallowing. Fever.
A common first sign of tetanus is muscular stiffness in the jaw (lockjaw). Other symptoms include stiffness of the neck, trouble swallowing, painful muscle stiffness all over the body, spasms, sweating, and fever.
Tetanus is rare in Australia because of high vaccination coverage.
Tetanus is a life-threatening disease. If you have signs or symptoms of tetanus, seek emergency care. If you have a simple, clean wound — and you've had a tetanus shot within 10 years — you can care for your wound at home.