Tetanus is the name for an infection caused by bacteria, Clostridium tetani, that is found in dirt, soil, and manure and typically enters a person’s body through a puncture wound. Cases of tetanus are extremely rare in the United States—fewer than 30 cases are reported each year—due to the availability of a vaccine. In fact, the best way to prevent infection is to stay updated on vaccine boosters throughout one’s lifetime.
Contracting tetanus can be extremely serious. The incubation period between the time that bacteria enters a person’s bloodstream and the time that the illness presents itself can range anywhere between 3 and 21 days. Once the illness does present itself, it requires immediate medical attention. A medical professional, who examines a patient and looks for signs and symptoms of disease, diagnoses tetanus; there are no labs to test for tetanus. Medical treatment for tetanus is quite aggressive and typically requires monitored care in the hospital under the supervision of a team of physicians and nurses.
Most people who contract tetanus are individuals who never received a vaccine or who did not receive their most recent booster. This is the number one way to prevent infection. In addition, it is always a good idea to practice safe wound care in order to prevent infection. Good wound care involves seeking immediate first-aid for even minor scrapes and scratches, or any wound that breaks the skin. However, it is also good to be aware of the common symptoms associated with this disease as a safety precaution.
1. Spasms in Jaw
The first sign of infection is spasms in the jaw, commonly called “lockjaw” or trismus. This is a painful condition where the jaw muscles become contracted and inflamed. Most people with trismus are only able to open their mouth about 35mm wide. When trismus is caused by tetanus, patients may experience spams all over the body but particularly in their head and neck regions. They may experience facial spasms that result in a strained-looking smile known as risus sardonicus.
Trismus impacts quality of life by making speaking and oral hygiene difficult. In addition, trismus can pose very serious health consequences by making eating difficult and by increasing the risk of aspiration. This last side effect is perhaps of the greatest concern for patients experiencing trismus caused by tetanus infection. Because of the severity of tetanus infection, trismus cause by lockjaw may rapidly impede a person’s ability to breathe and lead to asphyxiation. Trismus that develops gradually or is painful only intermittently and to a mild degree may be a sign of a more systemic disorder and not a first-warning sign of tetanus. Other causes of trismus include other infections, trauma injuries, chemotherapy, tumors, or temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ).
[nextpage title=“Next” ]2. Stiffness of Your Neck
In isolation, neck stiffness may not be cause for alarm. Many people experience pain or stiffness in their spine or neck as a result of prolonged sitting, typing at a computer, or repeated movements. Neck stiffness associated with other potentially serious medical conditions are often accompanied by red flags, such as mysterious weight loss, unexplained headaches, fever or chills, or pain that becomes severe or gradually worsens. Neck stiffness as a result of tetanus will be one of the first symptoms that patients may experience, around the same time as headaches, difficulty swallowing, and spasms or stiffness in the jaw.
[nextpage title=“Next” ]3. Difficulty Swallowing
Among these other first-stage symptoms is difficulty swallowing food or liquids, also known as dysphagia. Sometimes dysphagia is a symptom that is unrelated to a medical condition and will simply go away on its own. In other cases, it can be a side effect of a number of different disorders and conditions including acid reflux, heartburn, esophagitis, or infectious mononucleosis. In patients who are infected with tetanus, muscle spasms and stiffness in the neck can make swallowing especially difficult or painful. Dysphagia is serious when it prevents an individual from being able to consume food and water.
[nextpage title=“Next” ]4. Stiffness of Your Abdominal Muscles
Abdominal rigidity refers to the stiffness of abdominal muscles that worsens upon touching the abdomen. The stiffness is an automatic, involuntary response from the body to prevent pain caused by pressure to the stomach. Unlike the intentional flexing of abdominal muscles, abdominal rigidity is involuntary: the individual has no control over the response. This particular symptom is always a sign of a serious or life-threatening medical condition. Although rigidity is sometimes confined to the site of the puncture wound in patients with tetanus, stiffness in the abdominal muscles can be one of the first symptoms of infection in older children and adults.
[nextpage title=“Next” ]5. Painful Spams
Painful muscle spasms, especially at the point of entry where the bacteria entered a person’s body, are a particularly common symptom of tetanus. However, muscle spasms can be a common symptom of many other less serious conditions, such as overuse, muscle fatigue, dehydration, or electrolyte imbalances. Muscle spasms that affect the smooth muscles of internal organs result in pain associated with menstrual cramps, diarrhea, and gallbladder pain. When muscle spasms are a symptom of tetanus, the will likely be in the head and neck region, in the stomach, and at the site of the injury that resulted in infection.
[nextpage title=“Next” ]6. Fever
Fever is always a sign that an individual’s body is trying to fight off an infection of some kind. It is also always a sign that something abnormal is happening; however, it is not typically cause for major concern unless the fever reaches 103 F or higher. For infants and toddlers, any slight change in temperature may indicate a serious infection and should result in immediate medical attention. The average temperature for a healthy adult is 98.6 F. Sweating, chills and shivering, headaches, muscle aches, loss of appetite, irritability, dehydration, and general weakness will generally accompany a fever.
[nextpage title=“Next” ]7. Sweating
To accompany a fever, many individuals will experience sweating when they are infected with tetanus. This is an early symptom that will persist through the late stages of the disease. There are many other medical conditions that are associated with both fever and sweating, as these two symptoms tend to come in a pair. Most are also a result of the body’s response to infection and is a sign that the body is doing its best to fight the infection. Some of these other conditions include mononucleosis, the flu, urinary tract infections, or systemic disorders like lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and inflammatory bowel disease.
[nextpage title=“Next” ]8. Elevated Blood Pressure
This elevated activity in the body will eventually result in elevated blood pressure. Hypertension—high blood pressure—is extremely common in the United States and is typically associated with obesity, high cholesterol, poor diet, and smoking. Blood pressure is read with two different numbers: the systolic pressure (the number on top) is the pressure in the arteries as the heart contracts and the diastolic pressure (the bottom number) is the pressure in the arteries as the heart relaxes. A healthy blood pressure is at or under 120/80. Blood pressure that is 180/110 or higher range may indicate an emergency situation.
[nextpage title=“Next” ]9. Rapid Heart Rate
However, many people are unable to calculate their blood pressure. In a situation where an individual feels that they or someone they know is experiencing the symptoms of tetanus, checking for a rapid heart rate may be a better, more accurate way of assessing the individual’s condition. Many people with a rapid heart rate will report feelings of their heart pounding in their chest. A normal resting heart rate is 60-100 beats per minute. Anything higher than that is considered tachycardia. If an individual is showing the above symptoms in addition to a rapid heart rate, seek immediate emergency medical assistance.
