Tetanus

General or Other | Emergency Medicine | Tetanus (Disease)


Description

Tetanus is a serious bacterial disease that affects the nervous system, leading to painful muscle contractions, particularly of your jaw and neck muscles. Tetanus can interfere with the ability to breathe and, ultimately, threaten a persons life. Tetanus is commonly known as lockjaw.

Causes and Risk factors

The bacteria that cause tetanus, Clostridium tetani, are found in soil, dust and animal feces. When they enter a deep flesh wound, spores of the bacteria may produce a powerful toxin, tetanospasmin, which actively impairs your motor neurons, nerves that control the muscles.

Tetanus is an acute intoxication of the central nervous system toxin produced by gram-positive anaerobic bacillus spores of Clostridium tetani, is a contagious infectious disease treated in the infectious diseases services, surgeons role being to prevent infection , and once infection occurs, to treat the tetanus entrance.

The gate is a germ telluric (is found most commonly in the form of spores in soil, especially in areas fertilized with manure) may exist in the large intestine and even thin people and animals, which is eliminated with the faeces. This explains the possible postoperative tetanus and possible occurrence in patients who have suffered after years of war wounds, the scars keep tetanus bacillus spores, with their release in the recent surgery and pass the vegetative form.

Diagnosis and Treatment

Doctors diagnose tetanus based on a physical exam, medical and immunization history, and the signs and symptoms of muscle spasms, stiffness and pain. Laboratory tests generally arent helpful for diagnosing tetanus. Since theres no cure for tetanus, treatment consists of wound care, medications to ease symptoms and supportive care.

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