Tetanus as a single vaccine is no longer available in Canada
VCC is frequently contacted by people who have rejected all or most vaccines for their children, but still worry about their child’s susceptibility to tetanus.
On the recommendation of Health Canada, vaccine manufacturers no longer produce the single component tetanus vaccine. It is only available as a multi-component vaccine such as Sanofi Pasteur’s Quadracel (DTaP + Polio) or Pediacel (DTaP + Polio + Hib) . The reason? To insure that all children under age 7 are “protected” from diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis and polio. Health Canada has eliminated parental choice in vaccine decision making.
However, Td ADSORBED, the tetanus & diphtheria vaccine produced by Sanofi Pasteur in Canada, is available for use in children age 7 and older, and adults not previously vaccinated.
The amount of tetanus antigen in Td ADSORBED vaccine is the same as in Quadracel & Pediacel.
Each dose (0.5 mL) of Td ADSORBED is formulated to contain:
tetanus toxoid 5 Lf
diphtheria toxoid 2 Lf
Other ingredients per dose include 0.6% v/v of 2-phenoxyethanol (not as a preservative), 1.5 mg of aluminum phosphate equivalent to 0.33 mg of aluminum as the adjuvant, and ≤0.02% w/w of residual formaldehyde.
The Td ADSORBED vaccine is not licensed for use in children under age 7 presumably because their “immature immune system requires a higher amount of antigen” and the diphtheria component in this vaccine is too small to mount an adequate immune response. However, if parents want to order the Td ADSORBED vaccine for younger children, it would hinge on “physician and parental decision”.
Health officials have calculated that by removing the availability of single tetanus vaccines, people will be forced to submit to products containing multiple vaccines – a plan that may backfire as indicated by a number of parents who were considering the single tetanus vaccine for their children, but discovering they would be forced to accept multiple vaccines, changed their minds. An emphasis on wound care, is the most essential key to tetanus prevention.
From the Public Health Agency of Canada:
Preparations Authorized for Use in Canada
Tetanus toxoid is only available in combination vaccines.
