can anyone on the board tell me if it is necessary to have Tetanus shots if you are a lottie enthusiast??
Regards
Jitterbug
i have not had a recent shot
i think that if you injure yourself they tend to give you a shot anyway!
Not necessary, but prudent to maintain I think :)
To avoid any possibilty of lockjaw it is best to keep upto date with the tettie jab, as we all get cuts down the lottie
Ho hum, many moons ago when I first joined this site, the lovely Ina in Holland was advising us all to keep our tetty jabs up to date. Me, being a total needle phobe, cannot stand to see any pressure on the skin at all, let alone a needle going into it, nervously went to the docs and asked for a tetnus jab as I haven't had one since I was 19 or 20 when I went to Turkey. They told me they don't just give them any more and I would only get one if I injured myself, so I went away relieved. However, now I am a jobbing gardener I am going to brave the quacks again and insist on one as I do believe pottering around in other peeps garden is enough of a risk.
The parks and gardens dept. on most local authorities insist that you have one, and go for the boosters. I will have a booster next year and advise anybody else working with the soil to have one. It might only be a bramble prick but the consequences could be very severe.
Tetanus exists in most soils, but the chief cause for concern is horse manure. At one time I worked for a farmer who bred horses and we did once lose a foal with tetanus. I ahve always kept up with the booster jabs until the last time I enquired with my doctor, she looked up my record and said that I could not have any more and that I am now immunised against tetanus. I didn't realise that there is a limit to how many you can have.
After the initial course I had a booster every five years, then it went to every ten years. After helping the Vet with the foal I certainly don't want to get it.
It can be quite hard to get some GP's to give it unless you pay for it. I got my last one on the grounds I was rock climbing regularly & putting grazed hands into unspeakable sludge in rock pockets out on mountains & even then I only got it under blackmail as they insisted I had to have a rubella booster at the same time.
I have to repeat that we lost 2 local ladies some years ago from tetanus. And I have twice stuck a fork through my foot.
Yes - whatever the cost, it must be done!! There will not always be an A&E spot near you at the weekend.
Thanks for all the replies guys - ho hum its off to the docs I go!!!!
Jitterbug
i've a feeling they no longer update them, as a course is now considered adequate protection for life. It's been some years since I checked though, so I'd be grateful if someone would make some enquiries and verify that.
:)
some of you may remember that in september I cut my finger in half downwards
though the nail with secateurs :o :o
at a & e they where very concerned about when i had had my last tetanus, they wouldn't give me one until I found out.
my last one was when i was a child,so i had another
i understood you could only have 5 tetanus injections in your life time /shades x
This has got me thinking as I am not sure if I have had all 5 doses.
I found this site if anyone is interested.
http://www.patient.co.uk/showdoc/23068839
all you nned to say is that you work iwth horses or in agriculture and you will get your booster. I think my next one is due in a couple of years. Lincolnshire has the highest tetnus incidents due to its high agricultural use and from the horses that were used to plough in the olden days.
tetanus jab is a must have for all.
For a gardener its a must and if you are working with animals even if you just have a pet dog.
My two dogs ( ladies) were fighting Sunday morning and me half asleep put my arm between both of them.
Yes I got bitten by my pet ok accident but by the next day I was at A and E dept. to get antibiotics. Wound cleaning was not enough.
I was told that I had a 72hr window to make sure my jab was up to date and if not to get one.
Mine was so I was lucky now I am taking 500mg of penicillin 3 times a day for the infection.
please let this be a warning to all make sure you have the jab and any accidents where damage into flesh get to A and E straight away It may save you.
They are most important if you work with the soil or animals.
Once you have one thay last 10 years now, it used to be 5 years. Soil born infections can be nasty and the tetanus jab could save you. If I remember rightly tetanus can develop lock-jaw. Perhaps someone knows more.....
Yes, lock jaw is from tetanus. And yes, it is a 72 hour window - I had to sit in A&E for 4 hours and wait to meet that window after falling in the Regents canal (as I cut up my leg in the fall). Thought I'd posted here already yet mysteriously it seems I hadn't. So sorry if I'm repeating. :)
Tina.
About six months ago I asked my GP if I should have a booster Tetnus jab as I was a keen gardener. I couldn't remember when I had my last one but the GP said she would look it up and then ring me. She rang me at home and said it would be wise for me to have a booster and should make an appointment with the Health Centre nurse. I had it done and there were no charges.
You don't need a big wound to get Tetanus a scratch is enough. They've tried to fob me off before but I've always worked with plants and soil so I insist on having one. Every 10 years.
So what about children helping up at the allotment should they all have one too?
Hi
This may help but check with your GP.
Table 5. Recommended five-dose immunization schedule for tetanus.
Schedule Children under the age of 10 years Adults and children over 10 years
Primary course 3 doses of vaccine (usually as DTaP/IPV/Hib) at 2, 3, and 4 months of age* 3 doses of vaccine (as Td/IPV), each one month apart*
Fourth dose At least 3 years after the last dose of the primary course, usually pre-school entry (as dTaP/IPV or DTaP/IPV) 5-10 years after the last dose of the primary course (as Td/IPV)
Fifth dose Aged 13-18 years or before leaving school (as Td/IPV) 10 years after fourth dose (as Td/IPV)