National case definition: Tetanus

Date of last revision/review: May 2008

National notification

Only confirmed cases of disease should be notified.

Type of surveillance

 Routine case-by-case notification to the federal level

Case classification

Confirmed case

Clinical evidence of illness (see Clinical evidence section) without other apparent medical cause with or without isolation of Clostridium tetani and with or without history of injury

Clinical evidence

Clinical illness is characterized by acute onset of hypertonia and/or painful muscular contractions (usually of the muscles of the jaw and neck), and generalized muscle spasms without other apparent medical cause.

ICD code(s)

ICD-10 code(s)

A35 Tetanus

ICD-9/ICD-9CM code(s)

037 Tetanus

Comments

Detection of C. tetani toxin should not be considered among the list of laboratory methods for confirmation of tetanus since this assay is not available or in use.

Previous case definitions

Canadian Communicable Disease Surveillance System: disease-specific case definitions and surveillance methods. Can Dis Wkly Rep 1991;17(S3).

Case definitions for diseases under national surveillance. CCDR 2000;26(S3).

Retrieved May 2008, from http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/publicat/ccdr-rmtc/00vol26/26s3/index.html