tetanus questions

[momma_c]

I was hoping to get some information about tetanus and vaxing for it. I have a few good books on vaxing and have read quite a bit on the internet. I feel very good about vaxing for tetanus, and only tetanus.
I have read conflicting information about tetanus itself and also whether or not there is a single tetanus vax or not. I was hoping to get some input and maybe some direction toward good research.
To give a bit of background, my son is 15 months old and suffers from a tremendous amount of food and environmental allergens and has problems gaining weight.

[kittygrrl523]

Since you say that your DS has a lot of allergy problems I would definitely avoid vaccines. Here is a link to a page that has the ingredients for all the different types of tetanus shots. They are alphabetical so if you're considering the shot that is just tetanus and not DTap or any of those other ones just scroll down and you will find it. I would want to avoid injecting anything that could strain the immune system, especially heavy metals.

Good luck in your decision making.

http://www.novaccine.com/specific-va...ne.asp?v_id=37

[Emmeline II]

DTaPIn the United States, tetanus is primarily a disease of older adults. Persons greater than or equal to 50 years of age now account for over 70% of reported cases. An average of 43 people per year contract Tetanus and there are 0-2 deaths out of a population of 301,139,947 (over 300 MILLION) in the US. (In comparison (FEMA) estimates there are 200 deaths and 750 severe injuries from lightning each year in the U.S.). A Tetanus vax at time of injury is supposed to be a booster to those current on vax and TIG (tetanus immunoglobulin) is for the unvaxed.

From 1992 through 2000 (9 years), 15 cases of tetanus in children <15 years of age were reported from 11 states. Two cases were in neonates <10 days of age;the other 13 cases were in children who ranged in age from 3to 14 years. The median length of hospitalization was 28 days; 8 children required mechanical ventilation. There were no deaths. (I don't have info on their state of health or wound care).

It is not the rust that causes tetanus, so a rusty nail in and of itself is not the issue. Tetanus needs an anaerobic environment to thrive. A wound that has bled is not typically that environment. Keep it clean and covered.

"Keep in mind that the tetanus vaccine became available for widespread civilian use in the late 1940's. Thus tetanus mortality had declined from 205 deaths per 100,000 wounds in the American Civil War (1860) to about .4 deaths per 100,000 population in 1947 at the beginning of widespread civilian use of the vaccine. This means that sanitation, nutrition, year around nutritional improvements, general hygiene, and wound hygiene had reduced the mortality and incidence of tetanus by as much as 99.8 percent before the widespread use of tetanus vaccine." Hilary Butler 89wds



I'll pm you with more.

[peainthepod]

Originally Posted by momma_c

To give a bit of background, my son is 15 months old and suffers from a tremendous amount of food and environmental allergens and has problems gaining weight.

Then I would avoid vaccinating if at all possible.

Tetanus infection is SO rare in babies and young children. It requires an anaerobic environment to flourish and little ones bleed too much. This is also why you see it more in the elderly--their circulation is poor.

If your baby really were injured in a way that might be a tetanus risk, such as a large crushing wound or a serious burn, he would receive tetanus immunoglobin in the hospital whether he were vaccinated or not. So then what is the purpose of the vaccine? It's supposedly to lessen the symptoms if he were to get tetanus, but he's already so unlikely to get tetanus that it seems like a huge risk to take, especially with his preexisting allergies.

Tetanus is scary, no doubt, but vaccine reactions are much scarier IMO. Whatever you decide, your son is lucky to have a mama who is asking these questions on his behalf.

[Bluegoat]

Originally Posted by peainthepod

Then I would avoid vaccinating if at all possible.

Tetanus infection is SO rare in babies and young children. It requires an anaerobic environment to flourish and little ones bleed too much. This is also why you see it more in the elderly--their circulation is poor.

If your baby really were injured in a way that might be a tetanus risk, such as a large crushing wound or a serious burn, he would receive tetanus immunoglobin in the hospital whether he were vaccinated or not. So then what is the purpose of the vaccine? It's supposedly to lessen the symptoms if he were to get tetanus, but he's already so unlikely to get tetanus that it seems like a huge risk to take, especially with his preexisting allergies.

Tetanus is scary, no doubt, but vaccine reactions are much scarier IMO. Whatever you decide, your son is lucky to have a mama who is asking these questions on his behalf.

I could be quite wrong, but I was under the impression that the immunoglobin was not always effective, even if administered right away?

I'd probably put it off though, at least until he was old enough to be playing outside.

[Symbi]

Info. on the Tetanus-only vaccine from Dr. Sears's vaccine book (pp. 42-43)

"The T vaccine . . . is approved for use in kids age seven and older and for adults. (Doctors can administer it at any age; it just isn't officially approved for younger kids yet.)"

The Tetanus-only does contain less than .3 micrograms of Mercury, which Dr. Sears calls "a very tiny amount" (I personally am not sure I'm comfortable with ANY amount of mercury being injected--no matter how tiny, but that is besides the point).

Dr. Sears says, "Be aware, however, that Sanofi Pasteur also makes this vaccine in a 15-dose vial with mercury (25 micrograms). This form is less expensive. Be sure your doctor or ER uses the low-mercury single-dose vials."

He also gives some good information on DT (designed for infants and children up to age seven--also has less than .3 micrograms of Mercury) and on the DTaP (some brands have no mercury and lower aluminum than others) if you do end up considering either of those shots. Do you have access to his book? I found (and find) it very helpful in sorting through the options and the different shots/ingredients/etc.

[Symbi]

I forgot to add that the allergy problems and weight gain problems would concern me as well. But so does Tetanus concern me for active, playful little boys (no matter how rare it is), so it's something to think through and weigh out for your individual situation. I personally am trying to wait until 2 years to begin this series (and am still undecided about which shot we will do: T, DT, or DTaP). But I may start sooner than two years. My LO is a lightweight on the charts and has had some very mild eczema recently. I would feel better if there was a little more "to" him before starting any shots and for the eczema to clear up. Probably more info. than you needed or wanted, but hopefully something in here will help you with your decision.

Another thing, if you do decide to start the shots, I have read that supplementing with Cod Liver Oil, Vitamin C, Vitamin A, and Vitamin D3 (you may get enough A and D from the Cod Liver Oil--I'm not an expert on this by any means, but I would and will look into it in detail before getting any shots--I just know you don't want to overdo Vitamin A)--anyway, supplementing with these (and maybe others) can possibly help with any adverse reactions to the shot. Come to think of it, I think I will start a separate thread on the whole supplementing thing. I'm sure a lot of the moms here know a lot about it.