Cats and the pregnant woman

There’s good news and bad news for pregnant women who live with cats. On the up side, they face little risk of contracting toxoplasmosis from their feline companions. On the other hand, there’s one less reason to avoid cleaning the litter box.

Jeffrey D. Kravetz, M.D., an assistant clinical professor of medicine who has two cats, decided to review the literature about cat-related diseases after his wife became pregnant. He found that casual contact with a cat does not put a woman’s unborn child at risk. “It’s never been proven that toxoplasmosis (an infection that can cause miscarriages or damage to fetuses) comes from direct cat contact,” he said. According to Kravetz it’s much more likely a woman will get the infection by eating undercooked meat or digging with bare hands in contaminated soil.

Kravetz, whose review article appeared in the Archives of Internal Medicine in September, advises pregnant women who must change a litter box to do so daily, wear gloves and wash their hands afterwards. “Basically, use common sense and don’t worry,” he said.