Tetanus is a rather serious bacterial infection that is caused when the bacterium Clostridium tetani enters the body, generally through an open wound of some kind. Widely considered to be a disease directly related to cleanliness, Clostridium tetani is commonly contracted when an open wound comes into contact with dirt, animal feces or manure. It is a disease that can be traced back throughout human history for several thousand years, often taking the form of some sort of religious “possession” and has only been brought under control in the last few decades or so.
The people who are actually at risk to contract Tetanus vary widely because no one group of people are more prevalent than another that have been infected with Tetanus. …show more content…
It wasn’t until 1884 when two scientists, Carle and Rattone, were able to identify the specific bacterium by injecting animals with puss obtained from humans who had died from the disease. The first prophylactic treatments for Tetanus were the use of formaldehyde during World War I; by the 1930’s this method was more widely used as a way to inactivate the Tetanus toxins. There is currently no reliable way to diagnose Tetanus in a laboratory setting; the best way to diagnose this disease is for the doctor to observe the patient’s symptoms to reach a conclusion. Even though there are vaccines to prevent contraction of Clostridium tetani, there is no cure once infected. Once bound to nerve tissue Tetanus can’t be removed from the body, but for unbound Tetanus toxins, an 500 unit injection (intramuscular, for both adults and children) is recommended, with part of the dose injected near the site of the wound where Clostridium tetani infiltrated the body, provided it can be …show more content…
After this primary series of injections, booster doses at various stages are recommended, with the first booster at age 4-6 years, preferably before the child enters school. The next booster at the age of 11-12 years and then every 10 years thereafter. Not getting the booster shot every 10 years as recommended will increase an individual’s risk for contracting Tetanus exponentially, especially if they work in the agriculture industry where exposure to the animals that have the spores for the disease is greatest. Side effects to the vaccine are usually limited to mild pain around the injection site and doesn’t typically require medical attention as the pain and soreness will go away on its own after a day or two. It should also be noted that it is not possible to contract the disease itself from the vaccination… it’s just not.
As far as support for people that have contracted Tetanus goes, most of the reported cases in the United States are for those people that are not vaccinated or haven’t kept up with their booster injections, mainly due to religious reasons; in other words, their support group is their church… which leads me into:
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The people who are actually at risk to contract Tetanus vary widely because no one group of people are more prevalent than another that have been infected with Tetanus. …show more content…
It wasn’t until 1884 when two scientists, Carle and Rattone, were able to identify the specific bacterium by injecting animals with puss obtained from humans who had died from the disease. The first prophylactic treatments for Tetanus were the use of formaldehyde during World War I; by the 1930’s this method was more widely used as a way to inactivate the Tetanus toxins. There is currently no reliable way to diagnose Tetanus in a laboratory setting; the best way to diagnose this disease is for the doctor to observe the patient’s symptoms to reach a conclusion. Even though there are vaccines to prevent contraction of Clostridium tetani, there is no cure once infected. Once bound to nerve tissue Tetanus can’t be removed from the body, but for unbound Tetanus toxins, an 500 unit injection (intramuscular, for both adults and children) is recommended, with part of the dose injected near the site of the wound where Clostridium tetani infiltrated the body, provided it can be …show more content…
After this primary series of injections, booster doses at various stages are recommended, with the first booster at age 4-6 years, preferably before the child enters school. The next booster at the age of 11-12 years and then every 10 years thereafter. Not getting the booster shot every 10 years as recommended will increase an individual’s risk for contracting Tetanus exponentially, especially if they work in the agriculture industry where exposure to the animals that have the spores for the disease is greatest. Side effects to the vaccine are usually limited to mild pain around the injection site and doesn’t typically require medical attention as the pain and soreness will go away on its own after a day or two. It should also be noted that it is not possible to contract the disease itself from the vaccination… it’s just not.
As far as support for people that have contracted Tetanus goes, most of the reported cases in the United States are for those people that are not vaccinated or haven’t kept up with their booster injections, mainly due to religious reasons; in other words, their support group is their church… which leads me into:
What I find most