The document discusses communicable diseases and provides details on tetanus. It defines communicable diseases as those that can be transmitted between individuals via an infectious agent. It then lists common communicable diseases and modes of transmission. The document focuses on tetanus, describing it as a medical condition caused by a toxin that leads to prolonged muscle contractions. It discusses different types of tetanus like generalized, neonatal, local, and cephalic and their associated symptoms. Prevention of tetanus is through vaccination with a tetanus toxoid booster recommended every 10 years.
2. Communicable Diseases
Communicable Diseases is one that can
be transmitted from one person to
another and is caused by an infectious
agent that is transmitted from a source to
a host. Communicable diseases are
diseases that you can "catch" from
someone or something else.
3. Types of
Communicable Diseases
Hantavirus
HIV/AIDS
MRSA
Measles
Pertussis
Rabies
Flu
Sexually Transmitted Disease
Tuberculosis
West Nile Virus
6. Prevention of
Communicable Disease
Good Site Planning
Provision of Basic Clinical Services
Provision of Appropriate Shelter
Clean Water Supply
Sanitation
Mass Vaccination Against Specific Diseases
Regular and Sufficient Food Supply
Control of Vectors
8. Primary Prevention
Prevention Before Disease
Increasing the Resistance of the Host
Inactivating the Agent
Interrupt the Chain of Infection
Restricting Spread of Infection
9. Secondary Prevention
Prevention at earliest time after disease
Begin Treatment
Stop Progression
Protect Others in the Community
Case Finding
Health Screening
Health Education
10. Tertiary Prevention
Prevention after Disease
Limits the progression of disability.
Treatment of symptoms and
rehabilitation vary with each
specific disease.
11. Tetanus
Tetanus is a medical condition characterized by a
prolonged contraction of skeletal muscle fibers. The
primary symptoms are caused by tetanospasmin.
Infection generally occurs through wound
contamination and often involves a cut or deep
puncture wound. As the infection progresses,
muscle spasms develop in the jaw (thus the
name lockjaw) and elsewhere in the body. Infection can
be prevented by proper immunization or post-exposure
prophylaxis.
13. Generalized Tetanus
This is the most common type of tetanus, representing about 80% of
cases. The generalized form usually presents with a descending
pattern. The first sign is trismus, or lockjaw, and the facial spasms,
followed by stiffness of the neck, difficulty in swallowing, and rigidity
of pectoral and calf muscles. Other symptoms include elevated
temperature, sweating, elevated blood pressure, and episodic
rapid heart rate. Spasms may occur frequently and last for several
minutes with the body shaped into a characteristic form. Spasms
continue for up to four weeks, and complete recovery may take
months. Sympathetic Over Activity (SOA) is common in severe
tetanus and manifests as labile hypertension, tachycardia,
dysrhythmia, peripheral vasculature constriction, profuse sweating,
fever, increased carbon dioxide output, and late development of
hypotension. Death can occur within four days.
14. Neonatal Tetanus
Neonatal tetanus is a form of generalized tetanus that occurs in
newborns, usually those born to mothers who themselves have not
been vaccinated. If the mother has been vaccinated against
tetanus, the infants acquire passive immunity and are thus
protected. It usually occurs through infection of the unhealed
umbilical stump, particularly when the stump is cut with a non-sterile
instrument. As of 1998 neonatal tetanus was common in many
developing countries and was responsible for about 14% (215,000)
of all neonatal deaths. In 2010 the worldwide death toll was 58,000
newborns. As the result of a public health campaign, the death toll
from neonatal tetanus was reduced by 90% between 1990 and
2010, and by 2013 the disease had been largely eliminated from all
but 25 countries. Neonatal tetanus is rare in developed countries.
15. Local Tetanus
This is an uncommon form of the disease, in which
patients have persistent contraction of muscles in the
same anatomic area as the injury. The contractions may
persist for many weeks before gradually subsiding. Local
tetanus is generally milder; only about 1% of cases are
fatal, but it may precede the onset of generalized
tetanus.
16. Cephalic Tetanus
This is a rare form of the disease, occasionally
occurring with otitis media (ear infections) in
which C. tetani is present in the flora of the
middle ear, or following injuries to the
head. There is involvement of the cranial nerves,
especially in the facial area.
17. Symptoms of Tetanus
Tetanus often begins with mild spasms in the jaw muscles—also
known as lockjaw or trismus. The spasms can also affect the chest,
neck, back and abdominal muscles. Sometimes the spasms affect
muscles that help with breathing, which can lead to breathing
problems.
Prolonged muscular action causes sudden, powerful, and painful
contractions of muscle groups, which is called "tetany". These
episodes can cause fractures and muscle tears. Other symptoms
include drooling, excessive sweating, fever, hand or foot spasms,
irritability, swallowing difficulty, and uncontrolled urination or
defecation. The episodes can also cause destruction of elements of
the nervous system through viral cell exchange.
18. Prevention
Tetanus can be prevented by vaccination with tetanus
toxoid. The CDC recommends that adults receive
a booster vaccine every ten years, and standard care
practice in many places is to give the booster to any
patient with a puncture wound who is uncertain of when
he or she was last vaccinated, or if he or she has had
fewer than three lifetime doses of the vaccine. The
booster may not prevent a potentially fatal case of
tetanus from the current wound, however, as it can take
up to two weeks for tetanus antibodies to form.