trismus (trismus)

[NL., or gnash (the teeth).] A tonic spasm of the muscles of mastication, causing closure of the lower jaw, occurring as a manifestation of tetanus, either alone or in conjunction with other tonic muscular spasms; lockjaw. - Trismus nascentium, or trismus neon a to rum, a form of tetanus occurring in new-born infants; infantile tetanus. The muscles of the neck and jaw are first affected, but usually general tetanic spasms soon follow. The disease occurs with special frequency in the negro race and in tropical countries, though severe epidemics have also prevailed in the extreme north.