Where to get a tetanus shot?

Written by Ai Bing Quan
General Surgery
Updated on November 20, 2024
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Tetanus can be treated in any department, but generally, after an injury, one would first go to the emergency room. Therefore, tetanus is very common in emergency medicine. Tetanus is a type of anaerobic bacterium that is ubiquitous in nature. If a person has a wound that is small and deep, the internal environment can become anaerobic, which easily leads to rapid proliferation of tetanus. At this point, it is necessary to inject tetanus immunoglobulin into such wounds. It is best done within 24 hours because after a long period, the tetanus bacillus might have already proliferated in the wound. A skin test should be performed before the injection, and the injection can only proceed if the skin test is negative. If the wound is relatively large and severe, it generally will not be infected by tetanus bacillus.

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Written by Zhang Peng
General Surgery
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Can I breastfeed after getting a tetanus shot?

Current research indicates that lactating women are not contraindicated for tetanus vaccination; the main contraindication is allergy to the tetanus vaccine. Generally, if there are high-risk factors for tetanus infection, timely wound debridement and care should be performed, followed by early administration of passive immunization with tetanus vaccine. Generally, tetanus antitoxin can be used based on the results of a skin test. If the skin test result is strongly positive, its use should be avoided, and tetanus immunoglobulin should be chosen instead. The effective metabolic period of tetanus immunoglobulin is about three weeks. If high-risk factors for infection still exist beyond this time limit, timely enhancement of immune therapy should be considered. Regarding the tetanus vaccine, it is generally advised that the earlier it is administered, the better, as early administration can neutralize the tetanus toxin already present in the blood. However, if the tetanus toxin has already bound to nerve cells, treatment becomes relatively difficult.

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Written by Liu Huan Huan
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Can I get a tetanus shot in the evening?

If a patient has a relatively deep wound, such as reaching the subcutaneous fat layer or even more severely, the muscle layer, it is important to prevent tetanus infection. It is advised that the patient must come to the hospital for a tetanus antitoxin injection into the muscle. After an injury, the sooner the tetanus antitoxin is injected, the better, as delays can affect the effectiveness of the antitoxin. Therefore, tetanus antitoxin can also be administered at night. Generally, one should go to the emergency surgery department of the hospital for the injection, as the emergency surgery department is on duty 24 hours a day, so it is possible to receive the tetanus shot at night.

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Written by Zhang Da Wei
General Surgery
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How long should one abstain from certain foods for tetanus?

To determine how long to avoid certain foods for tetanus, it is necessary first to assess the onset and severity of the disease. During the onset of the disease, it is generally essential to avoid certain foods, and this dietary restriction usually lasts throughout the treatment process. If it concerns the administration of a tetanus vaccine, then dietary restrictions typically last about a week. Since the tetanus vaccine includes tetanus antitoxin, and its effective duration is about one week, it can effectively prevent tetanus bacterium infection during this time. Therefore, during this period, one must avoid certain foods, usually avoiding spicy and greasy foods. It is advisable to primarily consume a light diet, drink plenty of water, and eat plenty of vegetables and fruits to better aid in preventing tetanus bacterium.

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Written by Zhang Da Wei
General Surgery
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How long is a tetanus shot effective?

It is definitely better to get a tetanus shot as soon as possible, ideally within 24 hours after injury, as the chance of prevention is much higher compared to other times. Once an injury occurs, it is essential to go to a formal hospital for wound treatment, and then use disinfectant products, typically hydrogen peroxide or iodophor, to assist in disinfection. Generally, for open wounds, stitching may be necessary, but such wounds should generally not be bandaged because bandaging can lead to anaerobic bacterial infection. Since the incubation period for Clostridium tetani, the bacterium that causes tetanus, is five to seven days, an infection could potentially develop during this time. Therefore, it is advisable to get vaccinated against tetanus infection within a week. If this timeframe is exceeded, it might impact the effectiveness of the preventative measure, thus rendering it significantly less meaningful.

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Written by Zhang Da Wei
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How long does a tetanus shot last?

The duration of effectiveness for a tetanus shot depends on the specific type of injection used, as different injections vary in their duration of protection. Generally, the protection lasts about two to three days. In cases of infection, it is usually necessary to administer the vaccine within 24 hours. Under these circumstances, a period of about two to three days can be used to clean the wound, thereby achieving the best preventive effect. Additionally, there are other vaccines that are ten to twenty times more effective than this type of vaccine, with a typical prevention time ranging up to 15 days or even about a month. Of course, after receiving the tetanus vaccine, it is important to monitor for any allergic reactions, as different injections may vary in their degree of allergenicity, and individual reactions can differ based on personal health conditions.