Tetanus in Poland in 2012.

Introduction: Despite of the small number of cases reported in Poland tetanus is a permanent risk to unvaccinated people. The severity of the disease is associated with high case fatality, especially among people in older age groups.

The Purpose Of The Study: The aim of this paper is to present the data of epidemiological surveillance of tetanus in 2012.

Material And Methods: Principal source of the data is bulletin: "Infectious diseases and poisonings in Poland in 2012, and individual reports of cases of tetanus sent to the Department of Epidemiology, NIPH -NIH.

Results: In 2012, there were reported 19 cases of tetanus. 6 cases occurred in men, and 13 women. 13 cases occurred in persons over 69 years of age and in those age groups 6 cases were fatal. The paper describes the geographical distribution and the month of infection, the nature of the wounds which were portals of infection and the duration of incubation period of the cases.

Summary And Conclusions: Severity of tetanus, despite a small number of cases each year leads to several deaths, which could be prevented by vaccination.