oh gosh. dd's arm

[mom2tig99Nroo03]

only bled a little. i put peroxide on it, and hub is taking her to the e r. she has a deep puncture wound. done w rusty garden stuff.

when she had her 2 month shots, she stopped breathing in the office. i don't know what she reacted to, and we have gotten no more. she is 6 now. if tetanus is from a bacteria, what does that have to do with rust? at that point dh will be saying she is current, because she has been given everything we believe she needs (and then some). talk me down from worrying about her getting tetanus from this wound. help me put my backbone back in place please.... alegna? anyone? (wish i could chat w h.b. again)

[ZoeyZoo]

From what I remember reading it doesn't have much to do with rust. The "rusty nail" image was because there tends to be more tetanus on farms and around barns.

A lot of people here take whether it bled to be a good sign the risk for tetanus is low. It's not foolproof but blood carries oxygen so it is unlikely (since tetanus can't produce its toxins with the presence of oxygen). Yound people have more oxygen in their blood so it tends to affect more seniors. Using the peroxide also helps with the wound.

If you feel there is a tetanus risk you need to ask for TIG; not the vax. Many ERs don't seem to know this fact. It takes a few weeks to develop antibodies to the vax so it will be useless for this wound. The TIG is a blood product with antibodies.

[Emmeline II]

I'll pm you.

[PlayaMama]

Originally Posted by mom2tig99Nroo03

only bled a little. i put peroxide on it, and hub is taking her to the e r. she has a deep puncture wound. done w rusty garden stuff.

when she had her 2 month shots, she stopped breathing in the office. i don't know what she reacted to, and we have gotten no more. she is 6 now. if tetanus is from a bacteria, what does that have to do with rust? at that point dh will be saying she is current, because she has been given everything we believe she needs (and then some). talk me down from worrying about her getting tetanus from this wound. help me put my backbone back in place please.... alegna? anyone? (wish i could chat w h.b. again)

the tetanus bacteria is found in soil.

i really wouldn't lie to the doctors as it would make it hard for them to give effective treatment. why not just tell them she had an anaphylactic reaction to the dtap vax?

i can't see them recommending to vax her after that.

[PlayaMama]

actually, i've been thinking about this. if you don't tell them she had an anaphylactic reaction to the dtap they may very well recommend something they wouldn't otherwise.

i really think that you need to tell the ER what's going on.

[mom2tig99Nroo03]

playamama, as dd got several vaxes that day, i am not positive it was dtap that causedjher rxn, and i wasn't wiling to play roullette by continuing further to see which one it was.

they did xrays, irrigated/cleaned and then glued and steristripped it. hopefully the small amount of bleeding it did combined w the oxygenation from the peroxide weill keep it from being an issue.

thanks.

[KristaDJ]

From what I have read (wrt tetanus) it's important to make sure the wound does not heal on the outside before it heals on the inside. I would make sure to open it up (just the skin) and put peroxide on it and rinse it out daily. I'd also put breastmilk on it if there was any available.

[PlayaMama]

i'm glad it turned out okay.

i was just thinking that if you told them she had an anaphylactic reaction to the dtap that you wouldn't have to explain _why_ you didn't vax her for that. i mean, there's a reason there are medical exemptions, ya know?

that way they would know her vax status for tetanus but they'd also not recommend that she get the vax. i'm not sure if the TIG would cause the same reaction? it's not one i've researched as i plan to do the dtap.

anyway, hugs! you must have been worried!

[Symbi]

How is your daughter doing?

[Noelle C.]

Your daughter is more likely to be harmed by your husband lying to the ER staff than to get tetanus. They need to know what she has and hasn't had, as well as what she had a reaction to. They need to know she stopped breathing when she got vaxes X, Y, and Z.

So stop worring about tetanus if you're not going to be honest with the doctor and other medical staff. Seriously, lying will do her more harm.

Ignoring your plan to lie, the chance of getting tetanus in suburban settings is so slim that I don't think you should worry yourself too much. If you were in a rural or farm setting, I'd strongly suggest getting the vax in addition to TIG because, in that case, the benefits would ourweigh the risks.

[Gitti]

[QUOTE=mom2tig99Nroo03;14551491]

if tetanus is from a bacteria, what does that have to do with rust?

Very little!

talk me down from worrying about her getting tetanus from this wound. help me

Children don't get tetanus. It is a bacteria. There are tetanus spores everywhere but they have to find an oxygen free environment to evolve into a bacteria and that has to produce a side product and your dd would have to be reactive to it.

Thing is that if there is one drop of blood in the area, the tetanus spores can't grow. If it is open to the air, tetanus spores can't grow.

Both air and blood are loaded with oxygen.

Generally tetanus is seen in old people with poor circulation or diabetes. And even then it is rare. We don't ever worry about tetanus.

[Crafty]

Children don't get tetanus.

This is not true.

While it is rare, yes, children DO get tetanus.

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

Results. From 1992 through 2000, 15 cases of tetanus in children <15 years of age were reported from 11 states. Twelve cases were in boys. Two cases were in neonates <10 days of age; the other 13 cases were in children who ranged in age from 3 to 14 years. The median length of hospitalization was 28 days; 8 children required mechanical ventilation. There were no deaths. Twelve (80%) children were unprotected because of lack of vaccination, including 1 neonate whose mother was not vaccinated. Among all unvaccinated cases, objection to vaccination, either religious or philosophic, was the reported reason for choosing not to vaccinate.

12 children out of all the children in the US is not a high number. But who cares about that when it's YOUR kid?

It can and DOES happen. Thankfully it's rare. But it DOES happen. Saying that kids don't get it is 100% false.

[sha_lyn]

[QUOTE=Gitti;14565875]

Originally Posted by mom2tig99Nroo03

Children don't get tetanus. It is a bacteria. There are tetanus spores everywhere but they have to find an oxygen free environment to evolve into a bacteria and that has to produce a side product and your dd would have to be reactive to it.

Thing is that if there is one drop of blood in the area, the tetanus spores can't grow. If it is open to the air, tetanus spores can't grow.

Both air and blood are loaded with oxygen.

Generally tetanus is seen in old people with poor circulation or diabetes. And even then it is rare. We don't ever worry about tetanus.

Not true. My great uncle died from tetanus as a young child. Yes tetanus bacteria won't grow when oxygen is present, but oxygen does not kill the bacteria. That is why it is more likely to get tetanus if the surface of the wound is closed off or healed first.

[Emmeline II]

[QUOTE=sha_lyn;14567913]

Originally Posted by Gitti

Not true. My great uncle died from tetanus as a young child. Yes tetanus bacteria won't grow when oxygen is present, but oxygen does not kill the bacteria. That is why it is more likely to get tetanus if the surface of the wound is closed off or healed first.

Originally Posted by Crafty

This is not true.

While it is rare, yes, children DO get tetanus.

http://pediatrics.aappublications.or.../full/109/1/e2
12 children out of all the children in the US is not a high number. But who cares about that when it's YOUR kid?

It can and DOES happen. Thankfully it's rare. But it DOES happen. Saying that kids don't get it is 100% false.

It was a generalization. Yes, technically a child can get Tetanus, but due to the circumstances it needs to thrive, it is highly unusual in the US. Maybe 1 child per year contracts Tetanus in the US; those 12 cases occurred over a period of 9years. Most cases are in those over 50 and/or those with circulation issues, who may be younger, such as diabetics.

Originally Posted by Crafty

But who cares about that when it's YOUR kid?

"Funny;" this isn't the attitude toward vaccine reactions.

[ema-adama]

And what is interesting about those 12 cases, they all survived. Not one dead. It's nasty and scary, but I was surprised to read that all the children survived, as I was sure it was a pretty much fatal disease.

And yes, the irony of it not being an issue unless it is your child, really does reflect a bias either way when it comes to weighing the risks of the disease and the risks of the vaccine.