quick help: unvaxed dd scraped her cheek with rusty metal

[waiting2bemommy]

This is completely my fault. I have a job interview in half an hour and was rushing to get ready. I put 8 month old dd on the bathroom counter....I had one arm around her and was tryign to put my contacts in with the other hand. She lunged over my arm, I caught her, but her head swipe the side of our toilet paper rack. The top of it is a little rusty from previously  being hung over the side of the tank. When i looked at her a couple minutes later, I could see a scratch about an inch and a half long on the side of her cheek. It was red but there wasn't any real bleeding; I dabbed at it with a towel and it didn't appear to have bled.

Should I be concerned? I always hear "rusty nails" as the reason for getting tetanus shots. Do I need to get ehr a tetanus shot now? 

And yes,this is  not even my first child and I totally know better than to put a baby on a counter.

[littlecityfarmer]

I think she'll be fine-- I'd be more concerned about bathroom-type germs than Tetanus, and would probably wipe the scape with some peroxide, and maybe a dab of TTO or Lavender to take care of any nasties.

http://kidshealth.org/parent/infections/bacterial_viral/tetanus.html has some info... Tetanus is really a concern with deep, non-bleeding puncture wounds and injuries like that. I've also frequently read about it being associated with farmyards and horses. Have there been any horses pooping in you bathroom lately?

Hope your DD feels better, soon, and hope your interview went well!

[phathui5]

If you cleaned it, I wouldn't worry.

[LynnS6]

Tetanus is a worry with puncture wounds in barnyards. Since it didn't break the skin and you cleaned it, I wouldn't worry.

[butterfly_mommy]

I would squirt some breast milk on it and not worry. 

[jessica_lizette]

Rust is oxidation of the metal, and tetanus needs an anaerobic (low oxygen) environment to take hold. So the whole rust = tetanus risk is somewhat of a myth. I would not be worried. :)

[Tumble Bumbles]

Exactly. The "nail" (rusty or not) is the typical example because it refers to a puncture wound. It really has nothing to do with rust, but rather an environment where there is a lack of sufficient oxygen, such as with a puncture. I wouldn't worry at all mama :)
 

 Quote:

Originally Posted by jessica_lizette 

Rust is oxidation of the metal, and tetanus needs an anaerobic (low oxygen) environment to take hold. So the whole rust = tetanus risk is somewhat of a myth. I would not be worried. :)

[prothyraia]

Just to agree with everyone else- a scrape is definitely not a problem.  A puncture could be.