Tetanus Shots - Important !

[Vivek.M]

Greetings fellow URGLERs and RGers, Have you been vaccinated against Tetanus? I know, I know: You were - as babies and kids, but have you been vaccinated recently? As in, the last ten years?

I cut my foot yesterday and having forgotten about it, scooted out into the garden for some digging and mucking; It started to rain and i continued till i noticed that my foot felt a wee bit sore - Alas! I wear broken down shoes which leak water and mud. Well, when i examined it, i found the cut and treated it with anti-septic. I also checked up on when i had last taken my Tetanus shots. Alack! my license had un-fortunately expired!

Today morning i woke up with a mildly sore neck from over-sleeping and sore muscles ( probably from the sudden shock of actually working

*grin* ), however i decided to do the cautious thing and update my tetanus vaccine. I also googled up on tetanus and though i'd share my findings:

1. 5 Shots: 3 (as a wee lad)) + 1 + 1 (by 6 yrs)

2.A booster shot every 10 years.

I would also suggest wearing watertight and mud proof shoes, not that you can't contract tetanus via a nick on your hand..

There is no need to err..panic..if you do expose yourself.. since the tetanus bacteria has a incubation period of 3 days to 15 weeks (long after the wound or pain from the wound has passed!), however you must get the following done:

1. Wash wound in antiseptic.
2. Go to a doc and get a tetanus shot.
3. Get a tetanus immunoglobin injection (which is a anti-dote for the tetanus toxin. It does not provide immunity in itself). Some ppl may be allergic to this, so remind the doc about allergic reactions.
4. Wait patiently for a month and see if you survive *grin*. You can garden in this period, but don't expose your wound to more bacteria.

Here's a link to motivate lazy bum's:

links:

[dr-solo]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ List Manager: Puregold Goldfish List at

up: the problem, dont waste energy finding who's to blame ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I receive no compensation for running the Puregold list or Puregold website. I do not run nor receive any money from the ads at the old Puregold site. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Zone 5 next to Lake Michigan

[Matthew Reed]

2 years ago - broken shoulder, tetanus shot. 12 years ago broken collarbone, tetanus shot. 8 years from now - who knows? Probably break an arm or leg this time, and get another tetanus shot :)

[FragileWarrior]

"Matthew Reed" wrote in news:0NidnV3S5qa0nlDZnZ2dnUVZ [e-mail]:

Just out of curiousity, why would a broken bone require a tet shot? Were they compound fractures? Tet shots aren't routinely given for things that do not break the skin, AFAIK.

[Vivek.M]

Possibly because of microscopic cuts. People have died because of a thorn pricking their skin - That's fairly invisible to the naked eye. I guess it largely depends on the nature of the injury. Better safe than sorry though..

[Matthew Reed]

"FragileWarrior" do not break the skin, AFAIK.

Road rash. In both cases there was a bit of missing skin. I fell off my bicycle (both times in my own parking lot, go figure) while moving slowly, but hit hard enough to break the bone and take off a small patch of skin.

[FragileWarrior]

"Matthew Reed" wrote in news:nLCdnSzRQ77du1PZnZ2dnUVZ [e-mail]:

So the tet shot was for the skin injury, not the break. We don't want anyone going around thinking they got inadequate care because they didn't get a tet shot for a broken bone, right? ;)

[Joshua Putnam]

You had me worried there -- when I broke both arms in a cycling accident, I didn't get a tet shot, just the usual casts on both arms. But no road rash in that accident, my gloves protected my hands and the pavement wasn't bad enough to rip through my jersey as I rolled.

But I did get a tet update after finding an old garbage pit on my property while planting the garden. Mixed broken glass, shards of pottery, and old rusty cans.

[Cheryl Isaak]

This has been interesting. Because the date of my last tetanus shot was longer than 10 years ago, I got one yesterday at my physical. My MD mentioned that there have been local cases in the past year and that the word has gone out quietly to make sure everyone stays current.

Cheryl

[outsourcingbusiness]

Someone I know got stung by a bee ( about 6 to 8 weeks back). He did not get a tetanus shot. He constantly complains about feeling uneasy and tense. Is it possible that he may be infected with tetanus and is there anything he can do now about it.

[Carl 1 Lucky Texan]

Not likeyy a bee is gonna transmit tetanus. Even if he had dirt on his hands and somehow got tetanus in the bee sting wound, extreme muscle crampimg/stiffness is the classic symptom of tetanus. Try reading about both tetanus and bee stings at

Carl

[FragileWarrior]

Uneasy and tense, is he? Sounds like he's spending too much time worrying about a little bee sting that happened two months ago. Tell him to chill.

[Farm1]

The old name for tetanus was "Lockjaw" and it results in extreme muscle stiffness (hence the locked jaw), muscle spasms and an extreme sensitivty to any noise. It affects the central nervous system and he'd probably have far more severe symptoms if he had it. He should see a doctor if he hasn't had his shots.

[Farm1]

uneasy

There is absolutely no reason why he couldn't get tetanus from a bee sting. Tetanus spores are ubiquitous and a skin puncture wound is as good as deep cut or any other way for the spores to enter the body.

[Janet Baraclough]

The message from FragileWarrior about a little bee sting that happened two months ago. Tell him to chill.

Although it won't be related to a bee sting two months ago, there are medical conditions which can present as feeling uneasy and tense (and should not be ignored). So he should consult his doctor, if only to rule out other problems.

Janet.

[FragileWarrior]

Janet Baraclough wrote in news: [e-mail]:

According to my research almost every adult in the entire world reports feeling "uneasy and tense" at some time. Those who constantly worry about small events that are easily remedied without asking strangers on Usenet have a higher incidence of these feelings.

Really. I have the documentation right here.

[Janet Baraclough]

The message from FragileWarrior contains these

Of course; but not usually constantly over months. We don't know if he's speaking of emotional feelings or physical sensations. There are biochemical and hormonal imbalances which may produce those physical sensations. Someone who has constant psychological tension and feelings of unease,r (has maybe spent a couple of months in a state of irrational anxiety which is completely unlike their usual self, with no obvious life stress to account for it it) may also, still be in need of medical consultation.

Janet.

[FragileWarrior]

Janet Baraclough wrote in news: [e-mail]:

Or he may be a big ol' troll.

[outsourcingbusiness]

Thanks. I'll tell him.

[outsourcingbusiness]

I told him to consult his doctor. His doctor tells him that its too late now to take a tetanus shot and not to worry. This person does suffer from mild hyperthyroidism. So he does get tense in any event. Its just that he feels that after this bee sting episode his overall tenseness in his body has gone up much more. Is there any way to rule out any problem by a blood test. BTW this episode is in India and therefore, not all doctors here have an idea of the latest tests that could be carried out. Therefore, is there a way to put his mind at rest by taking a complete blood test or would it just be a waste of time and money. (Insurance over here will not cover his test).