My 10 year old child stepped on a nail. I've cleaned and bandaged the puncture on his foot but I don't remember when his last technis shot was. Is this something I need to schedule immediately?
Hi,
Kindly look in to his immunization chart and see how many doses of tetanus toxoid have been given.
If the number of doses given is less than 3 then he needs treatment.
If the wound is clean and is small and if has had less than 3 doses before, he needs only tetanus toxoid (TT). If the wound is not clean, he may need a tetanus toxoid along with tetanus immunoglobin.
It would be better to give Td instead of just TT alone.
Regards,
Ratnakar
Is this something that can wait until Monday or do I need to take him in to an all hours clinic?
It has to be given early to be effective. Waiting until Monday is not advised.
I would like to inform again that if he has not had three doses before he needs the shot.
Also even if he has had 3 doses and if the last dose was more than 5 years ago he still needs a shot.
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The information provided is for patients' education only and is not a medical advice. Always consult your personal physician for complete evaluation of your health problem.
- Ratnakar Kini M.D.