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totally crazy question  

post #1 of 21
3/6/08 at 12:00am
Thread Starter 
So I am leaning more and more to non-vax, and I have some dumb questions-what if I were bitten by a rabid animal- what treatment would I get?
Or stepped on a rusty nail in a pile of soil in my yard, and say I didn't care for it right away-thus developing signs of tmj- which apparently is treated with a tetnus shot.
is there alternatives, or are these shots different from vax's, kwim?
thanks for lending an ear.

love
amyjean
post #2 of 21
3/6/08 at 12:07am
For rabies, you would receive Ig at the location of the bite, and 3 post-exposure rabies vaccines. There are no viable alternatives, and rabies mortality is near 100% once a person is symptomatic.
post #3 of 21
3/6/08 at 12:10am
Absolutely no question is stupid.

Here is info about tetanus - basically the "rusty nail" propaganda is nothing to worry about.

I am getting tired so I will just post a couple threads -

http://www.mothering.com/discussions...d.php?t=318926

http://mothering.com/discussions/sho...d.php?t=231708

In response to the pp, there is such a thing as natural immunity to rabies -

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8...?dopt=Abstract
post #4 of 21
3/6/08 at 12:11am
Quote:
Originally Posted by amyjeans View Post
So I am leaning more and more to non-vax, and I have some dumb questions-what if I were bitten by a rabid animal- what treatment would I get?
Or stepped on a rusty nail in a pile of soil in my yard, and say I didn't care for it right away-thus developing signs of tmj- which apparently is treated with a tetnus shot.
is there alternatives, or are these shots different from vax's, kwim?
thanks for lending an ear.

love
amyjean
Personally if I, or my child, were bitten by a known rabid animal I would opt for the rabies series. It's a treatment at that point more than a vaccination.

Rusty has nothing to do with tetanus Nor does TMJ have anything to do with tetanus

I would not personally be concerned with the tetanus risk from a rusty nail for myself or my child. If there WAS a wound that I felt was a true tetanus risk, I would get the TIG, which again, is a treatment, not a vaccination.

hope that helps!

-Angela
post #5 of 21
3/6/08 at 1:26am
Gitti, I'm not trying to be rude, but I'm not getting your point. One known case of natural immunity to someone with a high potential for exposure? It's not something I would count on, but I'm vaccinated for rabies anyway.
post #6 of 21
3/6/08 at 1:42am
How are you vaccinated for rabies? I've never heard of that. What vaccine is it? Just interested, is all.
post #7 of 21
3/6/08 at 1:53am
I'm a vet, so I was vaccinated before I started vet school (high-risk profession). I was exposed to rabies during my last year, so I received 2 additional vaccines then.

Rabies is one of those things I just don't consider debatable. If you're bitten by a known rabid (or likely rabid if the animal wasn't caught), you get the shots. The mortality is just too high. But it's really not something most people have to worry about. Most rabies in this country is in wild animals, and you're much more likely to be bitten by your neighbor's dog.

In school, one woman brought a sick raccoon into the wildlife clinic. She was petting it. We had to euthanize it, it was rabid, and she had to get the post-exposure shots. Lesson: don't pet sick wildlife!
post #8 of 21
3/6/08 at 2:01am
What amazed me about that raccoon is that he didn't maul her. The ones around here are pretty aggressive...I wouldn't go next to a sleeping, drugged out raccoon...much less a fully awake, rabid one.

Wow...I didn't even know that they have rabies vaxes. I knew they had the shot series for people who had been bitten (by either known rabid or unknown wildlife).
post #9 of 21
3/6/08 at 2:11am
We're talking POST-exposure vaccination, correct? (Just wanted to clarify since the word "vaccine" itself infers PRE-exposure vaccination took place).

The rabies vaccine only works for up to 2 yrs (per the CDC)?

The Ig has a shorter life and works for what 2 wks or so?

I don't consider those vaccines, really, in the true sense of the word. As they're post-exposure they're more of a treatment, IMO. (These shots are the shot series you were thinking of Angela...it was just weirdly worded).
post #10 of 21
3/6/08 at 2:14am
^ Ah...ok...thanks for the info/clarification!
post #11 of 21
3/6/08 at 2:24am
Quote:
Originally Posted by attachedmamaof3 View Post
We're talking POST-exposure vaccination, correct? (Just wanted to clarify since the word "vaccine" itself infers PRE-exposure vaccination took place).

The rabies vaccine only works for up to 2 yrs (per the CDC)?

The Ig has a shorter life and works for what 2 wks or so?

I don't consider those vaccines, really, in the true sense of the word. As they're post-exposure they're more of a treatment, IMO. (These shots are the shot series you were thinking of Angela...it was just weirdly worded).


Though the rabies series treatment is an IG and the vax.

-Angela
post #12 of 21
3/6/08 at 9:24am
Well, it's not like rabies is on the current vax schedule (yet!)

I would say to the OP, start by reading How to Raise a Healthy Child In Spite of Your Doctor by Mendohlson, and then Vaccination: A Thoughtful PArents Guide by Romm.

Tetanus has alot of myth misinformation surrounding it. The proverbial rusty nail is, in fact, an "old wives' tale."

I am more fearful of vaccine injury and the ingredients in vaccine than the diseases they are supposed to prevent.

GL
post #13 of 21
3/6/08 at 11:10am
If I got bit by a rabid animal then for sure I would get the treatment. It’s not a vaccine.

Same thing for tetanus. If I were to get a true puncture wound from an object in soil then I would go to the ER and get the IG shot.

These two things are not something to mess around with IMO. I know the death rate for tetanus is 10% but I’m sure the whole process is not fun and if I can avoid it then I would. That is just my opinion though and I’m sure others would view it differently.

Plus, I’m reading that you can get tetanus from just a scratch on your arm or a splinter. So some material says it is VERY difficult to get and some material says it’s as simple as a splinter. Who knows what the truth is.
post #14 of 21
3/6/08 at 12:02pm
One thing to remember about tetanus as well is that immunity tends to wane, if I recall, after about 10-11 years or so after receiving the vax...so my point is there are millions of adults out there, with questionable immunity left to tetanus yet they're out there working on farms, gardening, playing with their kids, playing sports and there isn't an epidemic of tetanus cases being reported...so perhaps it isn't as easily acquired as some sources say.
post #15 of 21
3/6/08 at 12:46pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by japonica View Post
One thing to remember about tetanus as well is that immunity tends to wane, if I recall, after about 10-11 years or so after receiving the vax...so my point is there are millions of adults out there, with questionable immunity left to tetanus yet they're out there working on farms, gardening, playing with their kids, playing sports and there isn't an epidemic of tetanus cases being reported...so perhaps it isn't as easily acquired as some sources say.
AND if you look at tetanus rates BEFORE the vaccine, they were very low then too. It's very difficult to contract tetanus. AND in the 100 years preceding the vaccine, nearly EVERYONE was working on farms around horses and such and I promise they were getting cut and stepping on things left and right...

-Angela
post #16 of 21
3/7/08 at 1:58am
Thread Starter 
yes- this is post exposure. After a bite or scratch that was poorly cleaned.
So they are not vaccines, but I was under the impression the deseases were bad enough that the only way to survive is the shots.
post #17 of 21
3/7/08 at 2:00am
Quote:
Originally Posted by amyjeans View Post
yes- this is post exposure. After a bite or scratch that was poorly cleaned.
So they are not vaccines, but I was under the impression the deseases were bad enough that the only way to survive is the shots.
The only treatment for rabies is the post exposure injection series. And the only treatment for tetanus is the TIG.

But again, they're not vaccines in this instance. Just like IV or injected antibiotics for a raging infection.

-Angela
post #18 of 21
3/7/08 at 2:31am
I'm not sure if we're just discussing semantics or if there's some confusion on the rabies.

The post-exposure prophylaxis is the vaccine. It's the exact same thing I was given before I started school.
post #19 of 21
3/7/08 at 2:32am
Thread Starter 
so this is more akin to - say I was bitten by a snake, I would take the antidote- right?
post #20 of 21
3/7/08 at 2:35am
Quote:
Originally Posted by cadydid View Post
I'm not sure if we're just discussing semantics or if there's some confusion on the rabies.

The post-exposure prophylaxis is the vaccine. It's the exact same thing I was given before I started school.
My understanding is that it's both. An IG and then the vaccine.

-Angela
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