Tetanus in a post operative patient—A case report

Paul Dienye, Andrew Bock-Oruma, Damien Uyagu

Department of Family Medicine, University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Benin City, Nigeria.
Department of Family Medicine, University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, Port Harcourt, Nigeria.

DOI: 10.4236/crcm.2013.21009                

Abstract

Tetanus is a preventable disease which commonly occurs with puncture or penetrating wounds, or contamination of cutaneous wounds. It may be secondary to surgical procedures such as gastrointestinal surgery on rare occasions. This article reports a fatal case of tetanus in a post operative patient in which the source of infection could not be ascertained. Active immunization of all persons against tetanus, adequate sterilization of surgical equipment and consumables as well as the operating rooms is advocated.

Keywords

Appendectomy; Post Operative Tetanus; Immunisation; Developing Countries

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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