CDC braces for shortage after tetanus shot discontinued, issues new guidance

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is urging doctors to conserve shots of a kind of tetanus vaccine, as the agency braces for a potential shortage of those shots this year.

Doctors should switch from using the so-called Td vaccine – the immunization that protects against both tetanus and diphtheria infections – to giving the broader Tdap vaccine instead whenever possible, the CDC now says. In addition to tetanus and diphtheria, the Tdap vaccine also offers protection against pertussis, the infection also known as "whooping cough."

This year's shortage risk stems from a decision by nonprofit vaccinemaker MassBiologics to discontinue production of its Td vaccine, branded as TdVax.