Tetanus is one of the most horrific preventable diseases in the world.
Anyone who has ever experienced a muscle cramp knows the intense pain that accompanies it. Think of it as a calf cramp.
Imagine every muscle in the body doing this for weeks, sometimes with such force that bones break and tendons are pulled from their moorings!
Without medical support, the diaphragm, like the rest of the muscles, cannot relax and you can suffocate.
An unvaccinated young man was injured while working outside on a farm.
The wound was cleaned and stitched at home. Six days later, he experienced weeping spasms, jaw clenching, and involuntary muscle spasms of the upper limbs, followed by curvature of the neck and back (opisthotonos) and generalized spasticity.
Later that day, when respiratory distress set in, his parents notified emergency medical services, who airlifted him directly to hospital.
The young man was subsequently diagnosed with tetanus and required approximately eight weeks of hospitalization and subsequent rehabilitation before returning to normal activities.
The young man required 57 days of acute hospital care, including 47 days in the intensive care unit. Hospitalization costs totaled $811,929 (excluding air transport, inpatient rehabilitation, and outpatient follow-up costs)
