Guidance

Tetanus: advice for health professionals

Guidance on the management of suspected tetanus cases and on the assessment and management of tetanus-prone wounds.

• From: UK Health Security Agency
• Published: 16 March 2013
• Last updated: 12 August 2026 — See all updates

Applies to England

Documents

Guidance on the management of suspected tetanus cases and the assessment and management of tetanus-prone wounds

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Details

This document provides recommendations on the diagnosis and treatment of tetanus, including:

• the use of immunoglobulins for the treatment of clinical tetanus
• the management of tetanus prone wounds
• laboratory testing
• guidance for classifying tetanus-prone injuries

A set of aide memoire posters are also available.

Published 16 March 2013

Last updated 12 August 2026 — Show all updates

1. 12 August 2026

   Guidance updated July 2026: Clarification of use of IVIG, clarification of risk assessment approaches, updated NIBSC testing results of treatment products.

2. 15 March 2024

   Updated table 5.

3. 18 September 2023

   Updated guidance.

4. 30 July 2019

   Added updated guidance - see page 5 for revision summary.

5. 9 November 2018

   Published revised 'tetanus: guidance for healthcare professionals'.

6. 16 March 2013

   First published.