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Case Reports
. 2022 Sep 26;2022(9):omac098.
doi: 10.1093/omcr/omac098. eCollection 2022 Sep.

Successful management of generalized tetanus in a 12-year old girl without anti-tetanus immunoglobulins: a case report

Arlindo Muhelo  1 , Ahivaldino Zita  1 , Amir Seni  1 , Danys Alvarez Arzuaga  1 , Lee Smith  2 , Damiano Pizzol  3 , Yasmin Al Naber  4
Affiliations
Case Reports

Successful management of generalized tetanus in a 12-year old girl without anti-tetanus immunoglobulins: a case report

Arlindo Muhelo et al. Oxf Med Case Reports. .

Abstract

In low-income countries tetanus is a major public health concern owing to a low immunization coverage and unclean birth practices. Although it is a vaccine-preventable disease, tetanus can be contracted across the life course. The disease is prevalent and harmful in newborn babies and their mothers when the mothers` are unvaccinated against tetanus. We report on a case of a 12-year-old girl who presented with general malaise, anorexia, dysphagia, trismus and dehydration, which rapidly developed into severe generalized tetanus and was successfully managed in a low-resource setting without the availability of human anti-tetanus immunoglobulins.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Generalized tetanus in a 12-year-old girl at presentation (A and B) and at discharge (C).
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