Is a crush wound of a finger a concern for tetanus?

[mamaof5boys]

This is the second finger my LO has crushed in our screen door. Both times he got the tip of his finger (fingernail) and bled underneath the nail. I know I've heard "crush" wounds are a concern. Also wondering because even though he bled, the blood is trapped underneath the nail- wondering if tetanus could be a risk?

Thanks so much!!!

[tayndrewsmama]

I am no doc or anything, but I don't see how it could possibly be a concern if the skin hasn't even broken. Am I understanding you correctly? There's been no puncture from an outside source and no broken skin either?

[rachelsmama]

From your description I'm picturing the bleeding being contained within the finger, and no puncture. Wouldn't you need a puncture to get tetanus? When dd crushed her finger she nearly severed it, so tetanus was mentioned, although the potential for a bone infection was more concerning.

[katelove]

If there is no break in the skin and if there is no blood escaping from under the nail then the risk is pretty much zero. If the skin is broken or blood can escape from under the nail then there is a theoretical risk as it is an open wound. However if it is a normal door in a normal house then the risk would be very low. LO should avoid digging around in the dirt until it heals but that's about it.

The type of crush injuries which are high tetanus risk are ones which cause breaks to the skin and which occur in dirty areas. The reason for this is that tetanus is an anaerobe so if you have an injury which forces dirt deep into the tissues (like a crush or puncture wound) then Clostridium tetani are more likely to thrive.

[mamaof5boys]

Originally Posted by tayndrewsmama

I am no doc or anything, but I don't see how it could possibly be a concern if the skin hasn't even broken. Am I understanding you correctly? There's been no puncture from an outside source and no broken skin either?

Correct. Why is a crush wound a concern? I remember hearing Dr. Tenpenny talking about crush wounds, but it was in the context of a farm accident. Does that mean that there has to be an actual open wound too?

My kiddos are always falling, and constantly bruised and scrapped up- tetanus is the one thing that still worries me. Did I mention I have boys??

[mamaof5boys]

Thanks Mamas! Sorry a couple of you posted before I submitted my response!

Since we're talking about tetanus....
Do any of you worry about it? What made you feel more confident about your decision not to vax with tetanus?

[ZoeyZoo]

Originally Posted by mamaof5boys

Thanks Mamas! Sorry a couple of you posted before I submitted my response!

Since we're talking about tetanus....
Do any of you worry about it? What made you feel more confident about your decision not to vax with tetanus?

For me there are two things that helps me put things into perspective and at ease.

First is Dr. Mendhelson wrote some interesting things about why he gave up on the tenanus vax. You can find it on ********* or the book How to Raise a Health Child in Spite of your Doctor.

Another thing that helped me was to look at the CDC's pink book stats. When I look at it there were only something like 45 reported cases. Most were in seniors; not children. Also several of those cases the people were vaxed. Also if I thought tetenus was likely there is always TIG and we would probably do TIG anyway because the vax isn't 100%.

[luminesce]

Originally Posted by ZoeyZoo

Also if I thought tetenus was likely there is always TIG and we would probably do TIG anyway because the vax isn't 100%.

As the CDC Pink bood says, no one knows how well the vaccination works.

The decision to use TIG is not something I'd make with ease, however. It is a blood product and there are risks of disease transmission.

[Gitti]

This sort of injury happens all the time in little kids and we don't see Tetanus as a result from that. My own kids have done that and so did my grandchildren. I never considered those sort of injuries worrisome for tetanus.

By a crush wound, I would consider like a severe car accident or a very heavy object that fell down on a child and crushed a major part of the body.

I would use arnica homeopathic globule several times a day and arnica tincture on the finger directly.

[Gitti]

Originally Posted by mamaof5boys

Since we're talking about tetanus....
Do any of you worry about it? What made you feel more confident about your decision not to vax with tetanus?

There were not even a lot of tetanus deaths during the civil war when injured soldiers and injured horses were laying in the muddy fields side by side.

Tetanus has never been a big concern in young people.

btw, are you concerned about botulism in the injury of your LO? Because it is just as deadly and the danger of botulism in a wound, any wound is equally to that of tetanus.

Why do we not worry about botulism? Because no one has taught us to fear it in wounds, only in canned food. We have to be taught to be afraid.

That and the other thing is that they don't even know for a fact whether the vaccine could protect anyone at all. There is no proof.

[carriebft]

here is a study looking at tetanus in under 15s in the USA. 8 years are looked at and only 15 cases are found.

http://pediatrics.aappublications.or.../full/109/1/e2

so its very very rare, although most cases in these groups are in unvaccinated kids/neonates.