Tetanus is an infectious disease of the nervous system caused by Clostridium tetani, and is characterized by tonic muscle contractions, painful spasms, and autonomic dysfunction. Severe autonomic dysfunction associated with tetanus can be life-threatening. We present a 62-year-old female who experienced lockjaw after an ankle fracture. The patient was diagnosed with tetanus and received tetanus immunoglobulin and a vaccination. The patient subsequently experienced labile hypertension. This case highlights the challenge and importance of managing cardiovascular instability.

Citations

• Successful management of severe generalized tetanus in a 23‐year man with phenobarbital adjuvant: A case report
  Arezoo Ahmadi, Elahe Karimpour‐Razkenari, Ramin Ansari, Mahforouzalsadat Marashi, Hamidreza Sharifnia, Atabak Najafi, Mojtaba Mojtahedzadeh
  Clinical Case Reports.2023;[Epub]     CrossRef

Tetanus is a disorder known to interfere with inhibitory modulation of the motor system in humans. In this report, wedescribe the characteristic neurophysiological findings in a 52-year-old patient with generalized tetanus. The cutaneoussilent period was absent and the silent period evoked in distal upper limb muscles by transcranial magnetic stimulationwas shortened. These findings can be interpreted as evidence of impaired inhibitory mechanisms at multiple levels ofthe nervous system.