Contents:
- Medical Video: 7 signs of wound infection - Band-Aid® Brand of First Aid Products
- The initial symptoms of tetanus that you need to be aware of
- 1. Rigid jaw muscles
- 2. Stiff muscles in the face and neck
- 3. Difficulty swallowing
- 4. The stomach feels hard when touched
- 5. Fever and sweating
- 6. Stiff muscles around the wound
Medical Video: 7 signs of wound infection - Band-Aid® Brand of First Aid Products
The slightest wound on the body, you should not underestimate. Why? Wounds that are not properly treated, can develop into serious infections, such as tetanus. Tetanus is a damage to the nervous system due to bacteria Clostridium tetani which infects wounds.
Without treatment, bacteria can spread and infect important organs through blood vessels in the lungs, kidney muscles, brain, and cause death. For the condition to not worsen, pay attention to the early symptoms of tetanus in the following review.
The initial symptoms of tetanus that you need to be aware of
The time for developing an infection with the onset of tetanus symptoms ranges from three to 21 days. But in many cases, the symptoms of tetanus will appear on the seventh or eighth day after being infected. Some of the early symptoms of tetanus that you need to pay attention to include:
1. Rigid jaw muscles
Tetanus is also called lockjaw which means the jaw is stiff as locked. So called because bacterial infections make the masseter muscle, the muscle that controls the motion of the jaw suddenly contracts.
During contraction, the masseter muscle becomes stiff and the jaw will be tightly closed. This condition is the earliest symptom that becomes the alarm for tetanus.
2. Stiff muscles in the face and neck
In addition to the jaw muscles, tetanus also follows other symptoms such as facial muscle stiffness. This condition can occur as long as the jaw muscle is stiff or thereafter. Stiffness of facial muscles causes a person to not express normally.
If the stiff muscles are around the mouth, then the smile shown will look strange and seem forced. This condition is also called risus sardonicus.
After these symptoms, toxins from bacteria can spread to the lower body parts, namely the neck muscles. As a result, the neck will also feel stiff.
3. Difficulty swallowing
Infection that attacks the neck muscles can spread to the area of the esophagus. As a result, the esophagus muscles that push food or water down can be disrupted by coordination. So, you will find it difficult to swallow something.
4. The stomach feels hard when touched
Infection that attacks the esophagus muscles will not just stop, if not treated. Toxins from bacteria will enter the abdominal area and make the muscles and abdominal wall stiff. This condition causes your stomach to feel hard when touched.
5. Fever and sweating
Fever indicates the immune system is fighting infection. As long as tetanus infection continues, fever accompanied by a lot of sweat will continue to occur until the final stages of the disease.
6. Stiff muscles around the wound
The stiffness of the muscles around the wound usually occurs in local tetanus types. This type of tetanus is rare and is not accompanied by symptoms of fever accompanied by sweating.
