heiwalove
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 6467
posted
okay guys. i'm reading the memories and i know this has been asked before. but i don't know what to do.
last night my cat bit me for the first time ever. he chomped down hard on my arm, and now i have five puncture wounds, none of which bled. the fact they didn't bleed is actually a bad sign, as bacteria could be (and likely are) trapped inside the skin.
cat bites are notoriously prone to infection, are notoriously dangerous. i didn't realize this until i called my practitioner and casually told her what happened. i've upped my dose of zithromax to 1000 mg (twice what it usually is), have doubled my freeze-dried garlic dose, am taking colloidal silver internally and washing the wounds with H202 and silver, am applying a homemade antibacterial herbal poultice at least once daily. but i don't know if that's enough.
my extremely alternative, vaccine-wary, klinghardt-trained practitioner actually suggested i get the tetanus shot (i think - what she said in her message [we played phone tag all day] was 'first, make sure your tetanus is up to date, that you've had it in the last ten years.' well, it isn't and i haven't). i was shocked. i'm waiting until i can actually talk this over with her, but i thought i'd ask for your opinions as well.
i don't want the vaccine. i don't want to get tetanus. i have no idea what to do.
help?
ps. my cat is mostly indoors but has been outside before - when he was a kitten and before i knew better i'd take him to parks/forests so he could romp around, and now he escapes occasionally. but i try to keep him indoors as much as possible.
pps. the wounds look sort-of okay; there is some redness and swelling around two of them but nothing too bad. they don't feel hot to the touch. i don't have a fever. however, my arm has been hurting today, sometimes in places where the wounds are not. i feel like my body and the antibiotics are trying to fight off some sort of infection from the bite, but i can't be certain.
Hoosiers51
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 15759
posted
That's a tough one.
I would call your general practitioner, or where-ever you would be going to get the shot (a walk in clinic, etc), and ask if they can give you a vaccine that is against tetanus ONLY (not the tdap which is diptheria and pertussis too).
If you can get that shot, tetanus only, I would get it.
And I am one of the people that had a bad reaction to the tdap/DPT/whatever it's called.
The chiropractor I talked to after the fact told me that the tetanus shots aren't too bad, it's the one that's combined with the pertussis and diptheria that seems to cause problems for people.
So if you can get just the tetanus in the vaccine, I think you'll be just fine. Keep in mind there is always a small risk of adverse reaction with vaccines though. That's my disclaimer. But I would get it.
If you would have to get the Tdap booster, I dunno what to tell you. I guess just go with your gut at that point.
Good luck!
Posts: 4590 | From Midwest | Registered: Jun 2008
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Geneal
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 10375
posted
When my cat bit me I was on doxy.
That covers cat bites.
My doc made me go to the ER (night) and I had IV levaquin.
I was then given a Rx for augmentin.
I was told that doxy, augmentin and levaquin cover the bacteria.
I had received a tetanus shot following Hurricane Katrina after
Stepping on a nail in my severely damaged house.
However, no one, including the ER docs asked me if my tetanus shot was current.
A current tetanus isn't a bad idea.
In fact I googled it and it is highly recommended.
Cat bites are the worst animal bite that you can get.
Hugs,
Geneal
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Sammi
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 110
posted
A couple of months ago, I stepped on a rusty rake and it went through my shoe and slightly punctured my toes. I had not had a tetnus shot in well over ten years. I got the shot and had no problems from it.
Good luck with your decision.
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I had a tetanus shot due to a neighbor dog bite several years ago without problems.
Tough decision, though.
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heiwalove
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 6467
posted
thanks everyone.
i know a tetanus is recommended. i am scared of possible vaccine reactions, especially w/ having lyme disease.
hoosiers, i'll ask about the separate tetanus vaccine. thanks for that suggestion. i might end up in the ER or walk-in clinic today; i'll see what my practitioner thinks. a script for augmentin is probably not a bad idea. zithromax is broad-spectrum too and probably covers some of the bacteria, but perhaps not all of it.
sammy
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 13952
posted
I would get the shot, not just Tetanus but the TDaP (Tetanus, Diptheria, and Pertussis) booster.
Watch the bite area closely. If it starts looking worse rather than better you should go back to the doctor to switch antibiotics and have the wound cultured.
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heiwalove
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 6467
Hoosiers51
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 15759
posted
If you have active Lyme or active autoimmune disease, I would not get the Tdap. It has caused at least 4 Lymies I know of to have very adverse reactions and/or relapses, including myself. My reaction was within 10-15 min of the vaccine, and it was drastic.
I know it sounds too crazy for words, but what I went through is real. Our immune system is not prepared for whatever is in the Tdap....it is meant for healthy immune systems.
I'm not strongly anti-vaccine, I just don't want anyone else who is sick to have to go through what I went through.
The Tdap might be fine for you, but I just feel I should warn everyone, because there is no doubt in my mind that something "not right" happened with mine.
I have been told multiple times that not many adverse reactions happen from just the tetanus vaccine, so I think you should get it, because tetanus is not pleasant! And from what I read, antibiotics don't really "prevent" tetanus.....you really need the shot if you want to be safe. That is my understanding....do your own research though! Wiki is what I was reading.
Posts: 4590 | From Midwest | Registered: Jun 2008
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posted
I didn't know I had lyme until I had a tetanus shot... within a week I was sick.
Not sure if it's related, but somehow with me, I almost believe it got me out of my little remission I was in (which I didn't know I had it or that I was in remission).
That was 11 yrs ago... I won't do another one just in case it was what stirred up my bugs.
-------------------- Lyme, Babs, Fry Bug..... Whatever it is, may a treatment be discovered to make us all whole again! Posts: 941 | From AZ-MT | Registered: Oct 2004
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posted
I know who your practitioner is ..... if she said to get it, I'd be getting over there to get one. Period. I'm as anti-vaccine as they come.
Yes, it's best not to have vaccines .... but in some cases, like this, it's a good idea.
-------------------- sixgoofykids.blogspot.com Posts: 13449 | From Ohio | Registered: Feb 2007
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merrygirl
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 12041
posted
my kitten just mauled my finger. wolndering the same,
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merrygirl
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Member # 12041
posted
see other thread
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IckyTicky
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 21466
posted
wow guys... I've been bitten by cats more times than I can count. I have two kittens who love to bite and scratch. And I worked at a humane society and at a vet... lots of bites and scratches there too.
I know that cats carry bacteria and viruses... some that aren't even well known yet.. but really I just don't know if cats are SO dangerous, ya know?
I know my LLMD recommends us not to have cats.
I recently did get a tetanus shot (after a bad burn while cooking fish) I didn't want the shot AT ALL but fear of tetanus took control of me. So I got the shot. Even my LLMD gave the okay to get it.
That was a few weeks ago and I seem to be no worse for it. (I'm a severe neuro Lymie of at least 22 years, only dx two years ago) If you do get it, tell them you want ONLY Tetanus and not diptheria or pertussis (Dtap) They may have to order it special.
-------------------- IGM: 18+, 23+, 30+, 31+++, 34+, 39IND, 41++, 58+++, 66+, 83-93IND IGG: 31+, 39IND, 41+ Also positive for Mycoplasma Pneumoniae and RMSF. Whole family of 5 dx with Lyme. Posts: 1014 | From Texas | Registered: Jul 2009
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heiwalove
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 6467
posted
hi guys. thanks so much for all your comments.
i went to the ER tonight, per advice of my PCP's nurse. i actually spoke to my lyme practitioner on the way there and she thought the ER was a good idea; re: the tetanus shot, she told me to go with my gut, that she didn't think it would make a huge difference one way or the other in my case. that sort-of contradicts what she said in her voicemail, but that voicemail was rushed and i don't think she explained what she meant properly.
anyhow, i would've gotten the shot had they had just the tetanus available. they didn't. the doc offered me the super combination shot, i declined, and she seemed completely okay with that. the single tetanus shot has to be ordered, and the vaccine takes a week or two to take effect; by that time, if i had tetanus i'd already be showing symptoms. in other words at this point it's likely too late to do any good anyway.
they put me on a seven day course of augmentin, told me to watch the wounds and myself and to come back immediately if anything untoward occurs -- increased redness, swelling, fever, red streaks, pain w/ movement of my arm, systemic symptoms like dizziness/lightheadedness/etc.
they take cat bites extremely seriously. i was called in right away. cat bites are dangerous; the potential for infection is huge.
i do pendulum testing and my pendulum has consistently said i don't have tetanus from the bite. i'm not sure i trust it entirely, but i'm trying to. it/my intuition hasn't been wrong before.
heiwalove
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 6467
posted
ickyticky -
did you get just the tetanus vaccine, not the combination? did your doc have it in stock? i see my primary care doc on wednesday so i'll ask her about it too.
posted
I was scratched and bit by a stray cat last summer who i was trying to give medication from the vet. They had me fill out a rabies report and take Augmentin. I still had infection on Augmentin, so gave me a shot of Rocephin and finally healed. Had a tetnus booster and got fever and pain in arm for about 2 weeks and went down hill for a while. Had tetnus shot years ago and my lyme immed became terrible. Pain all over body, joints , muscle pain for weeks. Ask for high dose of Augmentin or shot of Rocephin if doesn't get better.
Posts: 211 | From In my house | Registered: May 2007
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merrygirl
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 12041
posted
my llmd is gonna call me. waiting patiently.
my bite might not be as bad since it was a baby kitten but it drew blood and he was dangling off my finger....
good luck heiwalove
Posts: 3905 | From USA | Registered: May 2007
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heiwalove
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 6467
posted
ugh, i'm herxing from the augmentin - head herx - some spaciness and extreme pain in the back of my skull. large doses of chlorella are helping somewhat.
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