Unvaccinated 6-Year-Old Boy Contracts First Case Of Tetanus In 30 Years
You’ve probably heard it before that vaccines saves lives and no matter how you feel about that statement, in this case a vaccine could have prevented what a poor Oregon boy recently had to go through because he almost died.
Today, the CDC published a report regarding the case in which a boy aged 6 years who had received no immunizations sustained a forehead laceration while playing outdoors on a farm; the wound was cleaned and sutured at home.
The result: he had tetanus and had to be hospitalized for 6 weeks costing the family over $800,000 in medical bills and expenses.
The state of Oregon has said they haven’t seen a case of tetanus in over 30 years!
READ: 5 REASONS TO NOT VACCINATE YOUR KIDS
Tetanus is an acute neuromuscular disease caused by the bacterium Clostridium tetani. Bacterial spores found in soil can enter the body through skin disruption, with subsequent onset of clinical illness ranging from 3 to 21 days (usually within 8 days).
The CDC paints the horrific picture of what this poor boy had to go through during his stay. Explaining that he had episodes of crying, jaw clenching, and involuntary upper extremity muscle spasms, followed by arching of the neck and back (opisthotonus) and generalized spasticity just 6 days after the cut on his head.
READ: WHY YOU CAN’T BE AROUND MY BABY IF YOU AREN’T VACCINATED
By the time he arrived tot he hospital, he couldn’t breathe on his own and doctor’s placed a tracheostomy where he was placed on ventilator support.
And even after all that he went through, and despite extensive review of the risks and benefits of tetanus vaccination by physicians, the family declined the second dose of DTaP and any other recommended immunizations.
Let’s just be grateful this little boy is now okay!
