 [ Symptoms ] i had a dtap in 2011 and i stepped on a nail today do i need to get a tetanus shot  im 16 [ Disease ] the good news is probably not the dtap vaccine which includes dipetheria tetanus and pertussis is considered protective for 10 years we recommend everyone get re vaccinated with dtap every decade that said the only way to tell for sure you are protected because not all vaccines take the way they are supposed to is to look at your blood antibodies if your blood contains antibodies toward tetanus then you are golden bottom line your best bet is to consult a health care provider even if you are up to date on your tetanus vaccination that wound could get infected with bacteria which could cause problems better to have it looked at and washed out if necessary hope this helps