it is not rust that causes it but a bacterium. And a vaccine avoids it- time.news

by time news
from Antonella Sparvoli

It is the Clostridium tetani. Its spores, present in the soil, can contaminate objects with which you can injure yourself. In our body they produce a highly lethal toxin

In the world they are at least one million cases of tetanus a year with a very high mortality, which reaches 45 percent. Most occur in countries with limited resources (the World Health Organization estimates that in 2018, 25,000 newborns died of neonatal tetanus) but there are cases in Europe, where almost half are registered in Italy. AND the summer season, with a peak in September, is the one in which they occur most easily, thanks to life in the open air and the risk of getting wounds with potentially contaminated objects.

What is tetanus?

Tetanus is a serious infectious disease caused by batterio Clostridum tetani which has the characteristic of producing spores. These spore can
stay for a long time, months or even years, in the ground and for this reason they can contaminate objects with which you can injure yourself, explains Roberto TailProfessor of Infectious Diseases at the Catholic University and Director of the Infectious Diseases Unit of the Gemelli Irccs Polyclinic in Rome. Through a deep wound, or more rarely an animal bite, if contaminated with soil, the spores can infect the human organism, where, under suitable conditions, they are able to transform into the vegetative form of the bacterium that produces a neurotoxic toxin, called tetanospasmin. When this toxin, highly lethal in very small quantities, reaches the central nervous system, it blocks the release of inhibitory neurotransmitters and causes involuntary and painful contractions of the muscles.

What is the real risk of getting infected?

Thanks to tetanus vaccination, today the risk of becoming infected has significantly decreased but not completely eliminated. In Italy the vaccine was introduced for the military in 1938 and in 1963 for children in the second year and for some categories at risk (agricultural workers, cattle breeders). In 1968 the vaccination was brought forward to the first year of age. The problem is that its protective effect diminishes over time and not everyone takes recommended boosters. The cases in Italy are not many (about fifty a year) and occur mostly in women born before the 1960s who may not have been vaccinated. In developing countries, however, tetanus is still an important threat, especially neonatal tetanus which can occur when a baby is born to a non-immune mother. In rural areas, to promote scarring after the umbilical cord has been cut, practices are still used that could give the “the” to the infection (dung / soil is used which can be contaminated with spores and therefore cause disease in the newborn).

What should be done in case you get injured?

In general, completely superficial and clean wounds do not involve particular risks, it is sufficient to disinfect them carefully. Careful disinfection is even more important for deeper and more contaminated wounds. In these cases, surgical curettage may also be useful, i.e. the removal of necrotic tissues to ventilate the wound and thus reduce the risk of tetanus, since the bacterium that causes it develops in the absence of oxygen. The assessment of whether there is a real risk of tetanus is up to the doctor. In such cases, a protocol is followed which takes into account the vaccination status of the person concerned. Based on this and, in particular, on the time elapsed since the last recall, it is decided whether to perform a tetanus prophylaxis that provides for the administration of the vaccine and, in the case of high-risk wounds, also the use of specific immunoglobulins.

September 19, 2021 (change September 20, 2021 | 09:47)

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