cat scratch disease

Nomis21

Today in the casualty of the hospital I was diagnosed with cat scratch disease.

I caught it because my cat had licked or scratched me in an open wound somewhere on my body.

Do I need to rehome my cat or will it be enough just to keep my distance or doiesn't make any difference as I have already caught the illness?

I really don't want to lose my cat after 6 years...

mymo

No you don't have to get rid of your cat.
Google cat scratch disease, I'm sure you'll find info.
It can be caught from fleas, not just the cat, it's usually mild and goes away itself, occasionally you need a dose of antibiotics. So far as I know there's no lasting effects. (is a bit more serious if you're immuno suppressed)
I've had cats my entire life, lots of cats, and I've taken in and rehomed cats and kittens many, many, times, and I've never caught it (doesn't mean I never will) that I know of, but sometimes it's very mild so might have but not noticed.

Nomis21

Thanks Mymo,

Googled it but all sites don't really say if it can recur after catching it once or if the cat will continue to have the disease for ever.

kathleen37

My first thoughts are that I'm more than surprised that A&E have diagnosed this, as the blood tests usually take a few days to culture.

Usual transmission is via fleas from cats - so if your cat has regular de flea treatment, and you don't allow the cat to scratch or bite you, you should be grand.

Nomis21

Tullamore A and E had the results within the hour.

Kitty can stay, but he's banned from the bedroom now!

volchitsa

No once you catch it you're inoculated for life. It doesn't have to be the cat who gave it to you by the way, you can get it from eating undercooked meat and possibly other causes too.

It's normally only considered dangerous if you catch it while pregnant, as it can harm the fetus. (I was tested every month for it when pregnant, whereas if I'd already had it, like a friend of mine, I'd have been ok. So not having it meant a blood test every month during each pregnancy. We had cats, btw, and still I never got it.)