Tetanus

//ˈtɛt.ən.əs// noun

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A serious and often fatal disease caused by the infection of an open wound with the anaerobic bacterium Clostridium tetani, found in soil and the intestines and faeces of animals. uncountable, usually

    "Compared to 290 children with TQQ negative, CWDs were significantly less likely to receive antenatal care (P=0.003), to get a maternal tetanus shot during antenatal care (P=0.004) and to receive full vaccination (P=0.01)."

  2. 2
    a sustained muscular contraction resulting from a rapid series of nerve impulses wordnet
  3. 3
    A state of muscle tension caused by sustained contraction arising from a rapid series of nerve impulses which do not allow the muscle to relax. countable, usually

    "We first saturated LTP in one pathway by applying repetitive tetani that had no effect on the control pathway […]"

  4. 4
    an acute and serious infection of the central nervous system caused by bacterial infection of open wounds; spasms of the jaw and laryngeal muscles may occur during the late stages wordnet

Etymology

From Latin tetanus, from Ancient Greek τέτανος (tétanos), from τείνω (teínō, “I stretch”).

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