Steem4Nigeria Accelerator- iTeach ||| Tetanus: Causes, Symptoms, diagnosis, prevention and treatment..

Greetings to everyone and a warm welcome to another episode of he health series, I really appreciate everyone reading this article.

Today, I will be writing about something very important, perhaps you might have come across it without really knowing the netty gritty. Its a well known condition, its called tetanus.

What is tetanus

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Tetanus is a bacterial infection that affects the nervous system, it causes muscular contraction particularly in the jaw and neck. This disease is caused by a bacteria known as clostridium tetani, it can be found on dirty surfaces, rusted metals, dusts and animal droppings.

According to statistics, they're about 30 cases of tetanus in the united, this is in contrast to a nation like Nigeria with elevated cases of tetanus every year, this is due to the neglect of the immunization programme.

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Symptoms

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The symptoms of tetanus do not appear immediately, they take approximately 14 - 21 days before the symptoms starts showing.

These symptoms includes;

• Difficulty swallowing
• high blood pressure
• spasm and stiffness of the muscles
• fast heart rate
• fever
• Tension of the muscles around the lips

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Causes

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Tetanus is caused by a bacteria known as clostridium tetani, this bacteria can be found on dirty surfaces, rusted metals, animal dropping. When these bacteria finds it way to the bloodstream, either through an open cut or deep wound that has been exposed, it spreads to the central nervous system and blocks the nerve signals from the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) to the muscles, hence, leading to muscle spasm and stiffness.

Tetanus has also been associated with puncture wounds from tattoos, piercings etc. However, it cannot be transferred from one person to another.

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Diagnosis

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There is no specific diagnostic test for tetanus, however, doctors diagnose tetanus following series of physical examination which includes asking the patient when and where the injury took place, date of last vaccination, signs and symptoms etc.

A laboratory test is often used only when the doctor suspects another disease different from tetanus.

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Prevention

Vaccination is the only way to preventing tetanus infection, this however should be done in line with the world health organisation guidelines which stipulates a booster shot every 10 years for adults. The vaccine is usually a 3 in 1 jab to provide protection against diphtheria (whooping cough), pertusis, and finally tetanus.

Children are usually given a booster shot at age 11 or 12, this is to make up for the earlier immunization they received at infant.

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Treatment

Treatment options varies depending on the severity of the symptoms. This treatment options includes,

• Oral or parenteral antibiotics to fight the systemic bacteria
• Muscle relaxants like orphenadrine and methocarbamol for the relieve of the muscle spasm.
• A tetanus vaccine is usually given along side with the treatment to help neutralize the toxins.
• Aseptically cleaning the wound to get rid of the bacterial debris.

Conclusion

Tetanus is a very serious bacterial infection that causes muscular spasm and stiffness when it gets into the blood stream. This disease will advertently result in deaf if not properly managed or diagnosed early.

Get yourself to the nearest health centre anytime you suspect a tetanus infection.
Thanks for reading.