Investigation of tetanus antibody levels in adults

Despite being vaccineally preventable, tetanus is still a toxic infectious disease with a high mortality, affecting neonates and young adults in developing countries and the elderly in developed countries. In countries where the adult vaccination program is not implemented, tetanus antibodies decrease with age and fall below the protective level In this study, we aimed to reveal susceptibility rates to tetanus in adults and to show the importance of adult immunization in our region. The study was conducted in 356 individuals aged between 30-85 years, who applied to Düzce University Health Practice and Research Center blood donor unit between November 2014 and December 2015. A questionnaire was applied for the sociodemographic data of the patients. Antibodies were measured after receiving serum samples in appropriate conditions. Tetanus IgG ELISA kit (Euroimun, Germany) was used in the study. Those with a Tetanus IgG> 0.1 IU / ml were considered immunized. Using the SPSS 16.0 program, the relationship between tetanus antibody levels and sociodemographic data was investigated. As a result, sufficient tetanus antibody was detected in 140 (39.3%) of 356 patients. 49 (70%) in the 30-40 age group, 39 (55%) in the 41-50 age group, 21 (29.1%) in the 51-60 age group, 16 (22.2%) in the 61-70 age group and 14 (9.4%) were found to have antibodies at the protective level. Tetanoma immunity rates were significantly reduced with aging (p <0.0001). Protective levels of antibodies were found to be higher in the vaccinated group than in the other groups (p <0.001, p <0.001 respectively). There was no relationship between gender, occupations, injury history, farming and livelihood, and tetanus antibody levels. According to these results, it was thought that the childhood immunity should be reinforced with whipping doses during adulthood. Key words: Tetanus, Tetanus immunity, Protective tetanus antibodies, Tetanus IgG, Adult grafting