Toxoplasmosis during pregnancy: not as scary as it is made out to be... Cat in the house and female pregnancy

The myth that a domestic cat must be isolated from a pregnant woman is based on the fact that our purring friends very often carry a microorganism dangerous to human health - toxoplasma. However, it does not take into account the possibility that our own body has already had close contact with a dangerous microbe during its life, and therefore did not fail to reliably protect itself from it. To understand this issue, you need to find out what kind of microbe it is that can cause so much trouble to a person and his furry pets.

Is the fear of getting infected from “our little brothers” justified? Can pregnant women keep a cat in the house? Most often, concerns arise about the possibility that the animal is a potential source of the causative agent of toxoplasmosis. Indeed, infection of a woman with this disease during pregnancy is fraught with enormous danger. A miscarriage is not the worst thing that can happen. It is more terrible if a handicapped child is born, a cripple. This really is a disaster for the whole family for life. Considering the unpleasant chance of getting a lot of problems from the proximity of a beloved cat, people are trying in every way to get rid of the animal in the house. But you really shouldn't rush into this. If it were true that infection of pregnant women with toxoplasmosis from pets was so inevitable and common, then half of humanity would now be moving in wheelchairs. Fortunately, for a truly dangerous situation to arise for a woman and her future offspring, a fatal confluence of many circumstances must occur.

Firstly, if your cat has been living with you for a long time and managed to get sick with toxoplasmosis, then, most likely, you yourself suffered from this disease (and its symptoms are very minor, they can easily be attributed to a cold), which means that your body is immune, excluding re-infection with toxoplasma. It is believed that more than half the world's population is infected with this microorganism. For example, in France - about 90%, in America - about 60%, in Russia - about 70%. By the way, toxoplasmosis can be contracted not only from cats. A dangerous microorganism can be introduced into the body when processing raw, infected meat or during gardening work, digging in soil contaminated with microbes. Expectant mothers need to take this into account. As already mentioned, a woman who has recovered from toxoplasmosis acquires immunity, that is, immunity to the disease. This means that the danger to future pregnancy and offspring is already behind us.

Secondly, cats that have suffered toxoplasmosis also acquire active immunity and become non-infectious to others. Thus, that fatal combination of circumstances that can ruin people’s joy of motherhood and fatherhood implies that while the family is waiting for a new addition to the family, their pet “catch” Toxoplasma somewhere, falls ill and infects its owner.

In light of the above facts, such a probability is small, but still exists, and cannot be discounted. To finally decide whether to get rid of your cat, have it examined at a veterinary clinic. The appropriate tests must be done at the hospital and by the owner of the animal. If you (and your cat) already have a disease on your back, then move on through life together without parting. If a cat does not have immunity, then it remains at risk of contracting (at the most inopportune moment) toxoplasmosis, and this, as you understand, complicates the matter. To prevent your pet from becoming infected, do not let him go outside, do not feed him raw meat, and do not give him dairy products that have not been heat-treated. Pregnant women should refrain from cleaning cat litter boxes and entrust this to other family members. If this is not possible, then use rubber gloves (preferably disposable ones) when cleaning. Periodically disinfect your cat's litter box with boiling water. And only as a last resort, if it’s really scary, you can ask your relatives to keep the pet in their house until your long-awaited baby is born.

It is dangerous to be around pets during pregnancy. Others play it safe and give the animal away. However, according to the head of the antenatal clinic, a doctor of the highest category, obstetrician-gynecologist Vitaly Rymarenko, observing certain safety measures and conducting a monthly blood test will help protect against pregnancy failure and give birth to a healthy child.

“If a cat regularly hunts mice, then there is a high probability that its feces contain toxoplasma. In this case, infection can occur while cleaning the cat litter, which contains dried toxoplasma. To become infected, a woman should not receive the entire infection that the cat excreted. It’s enough to inhale it - toxoplasmosis will enter the blood and calmly pass through the placenta to the child,” says the gynecologist.

As you know, most people (up to 80 percent) are immune to toxoplasma. If the mother has such immunity, then it is passed on to the child. But as a result of past illnesses, stress or diets, the body's resistance may decrease. You can find out by doing a blood test for toxoplasmosis. Such an examination will show the presence of the disease or the absence of immunity to it.

It is better to do the analysis during pregnancy planning, that is, before it begins. If the expectant mother does not have immunity to infection, then she is at risk. This means that a woman should make an effort to boost her immunity through a healthy and vitamin-rich diet, getting a good night's rest, spending more time outdoors during her free time, and gentle exercise.

Toxoplasmosis and pregnancy

How dangerous is toxoplasmosis for a pregnant woman? If the disease is detected before 12 weeks (the period when the child is formed), then, according to the doctor, this can lead to termination of pregnancy or consequences for the unborn child in the form of blindness, deafness and various pathologies of the nervous system.

Therefore, it is very important in the absence of immunity to this disease to do a blood test for toxiplasmosis every four weeks. If the test is positive for antibodies to toxoplasmosis, the infectious disease specialist will select the appropriate treatment that will help avoid negative consequences in the future for both the mother and her child.

How does toxaplasmosis become infected?

Infection with toxoplasmosis is random, and its source is not always pets. Danger awaits a pregnant woman in her own kitchen when she eats or tastes raw foods. After all, many housewives, while cooking, taste minced meat bought at the market or in a store. That is why this disease is three times more common in women than in men.

The source of infection can be any meat, but the palm in terms of the danger of infection, according to the general recognition of doctors, belongs to pork. A pregnant woman at risk should absolutely not drink raw milk or eat food containing foods that have not undergone sufficient heat treatment. Milk should be boiled for at least 15 minutes, and dishes such as rare steak or sushi with seafood should be completely excluded from your diet. By the way, unprocessed foods serve as a source of infection not only with toxoplasmosis, but also with a terrible disease, from which, in the absence of timely treatment, death sometimes occurs within two hours.

How to give birth to a healthy baby

So, let's summarize. If you are afraid of infecting your child with toxoplasmosis, then you need to:

• observe the rules of personal hygiene especially carefully;
• do not eat raw or poorly cooked foods;
• exercise caution when caring for pets;
• do not get new animals during pregnancy;
• increase your own immunity through proper nutrition and lifestyle;
• take a monthly blood test for toxoplasmosis so as not to miss the moment to start timely treatment.

Is it possible to get toxoplasmosis from pets and how dangerous is this disease during pregnancy?

Is a cat a friend or a danger for a pregnant woman? © Shutterstock

Often, a doctor suggests that a pregnant woman get rid of a cat in order to prevent infection and the birth of a child with congenital pathologies. Is the risk of contracting toxoplasmosis really that great?

What is toxoplasmosis and how can you get it?

Toxoplasma is found in the feces of cats (as well as related wild animals). Through contaminated soil, toxoplasma feed enters the body of other animals, including cows, whose meat is then consumed. Mice and rats are also infected with toxoplasmosis.

A cat can become infected with toxoplasmosis in two ways - if it eats contaminated food: meat or rodent. In the city, the main source of toxoplasma is street cats. Domestic cats can also become infected with toxoplasmosis through outdoor dust and dirt.

A sick cat coughs and sneezes, breathes rapidly, her eyes are red, with purulent discharge. Muscle tremors, emaciation, drooling are possible; the animal’s liver is affected - jaundice, vomiting, and severe diarrhea may develop.

They say that the latent form of toxoplasmosis in cats is dangerous for people. But this is not true; chronic cat toxoplasmosis is not contagious to its owners, since the cat does not excrete toxoplasma.

The main sources of infection for people are the same as for animals - soil contaminated with Toxoplasma, street dust, and meat. So a poorly fried kebab is more dangerous than a domestic cat.

Toxoplasmosis during pregnancy

At first, toxoplasmosis is similar to a viral cold. Then toxoplasmosis enters the chronic stage. Chronic toxoplasmosis becomes an acute disease when the immune system is weakened.

© Shutterstock As a result of toxoplasmosis in humans, cells of internal organs are destroyed, and brain damage is especially dangerous.

Unfortunately, in humans, Toxoplasma most often affects the nervous system.

Toxoplasmosis is especially dangerous during pregnancy or before conception.

Toxoplasmosis is transmitted through the placenta to the baby, which can lead to severe congenital pathologies.

10% of children develop hearing diseases and mental retardation.

Toxoplasmosis is manifested by enlarged liver and spleen, jaundice, eye infections, pneumonia, etc. Some children die a few days after birth. Toxoplasmosis during pregnancy can also cause miscarriage or stillbirth.

Although toxoplasmosis is not that common. According to American statistics, about 0.1% of women become infected with toxoplasmosis during pregnancy.

How is toxoplasmosis diagnosed and treated during pregnancy?

© Shutterstock If a blood test before or during pregnancy does not show any antibodies to Toxoplasma, then the woman is susceptible to Toxoplasma infection.

If there are class G immunoglobulin antibodies in the blood, then the infection occurred in the past.

If a pregnant woman has an active toxoplasma infection, the doctor will order amniocentesis and ultrasound to determine whether the fetus is infected.

If the fetus is infected, the pregnant woman will be prescribed treatment that will protect the baby from pathologies.

Precautions to avoid contracting toxoplasmosis

Don't clean the cat's litter box; let someone else do it.

Do not feed your cat raw or undercooked meat, as about 25% of the meat sold is contaminated with toxoplasmosis. It is better to feed frozen meat, toxoplasma die within 2-3 days at temperatures below -25 degrees.

© Shutterstock - Do not let your cat go outside so that he does not catch rodents, birds and insects.

Do not eat raw or undercooked meat, and do not touch your eyes, nose or mouth with dirty hands.

- this is not fur, not bites or scratches, but an infection that furry creatures carry - toxoplasmosis. The disease is caused by microorganisms that parasitize the body of cats, birds, or humans, but the final host of the parasite is still the cat.

Signs of toxoplasmosis appear only during primary infection and resemble the symptoms of a common cold. Often toxoplasmosis in humans is asymptomatic.

Toxoplasmosis is not dangerous for people, but infection can cause serious problems for pregnant women. The disease will not harm the expectant mother, but toxoplasmosis is extremely dangerous for the fetus - it affects the fetal nervous system, causes underdevelopment of the brain, and defects of internal organs that are incompatible with life.

The shorter the gestational age at which the infection occurred, the more serious the consequences for the fetus. If the expectant mother becomes infected with toxoplasmosis at less than 24 weeks, doctors most often advise terminating the pregnancy.

How to protect yourself from toxoplasmosis

First, you should take tests to find out whether you have been in contact with the causative agent of the disease before - doctors have recently included this test in the examination program for those planning a pregnancy. If, based on the test results, it can be concluded that you have previously been infected with toxoplasmosis, your body is already familiar with the infection, then you are not afraid of re-infection. If it turns out that you do not have immunity, you will have to do everything possible to avoid infection.

If the cat is outside, walks will have to be cancelled. Prohibit the animal from climbing onto the table on which you place food. Do not feed your cat raw meat - it is better to temporarily switch it to dry and canned food. Try to pick up your pet less often and do not let her lick you.

If your cat develops symptoms of illness - nasal discharge, fever, vomiting, diarrhea - contact your veterinarian immediately.

Clean the cat litter immediately - even if the cat excretes toxoplasma cysts in the feces, they need some time to mature and enter the environment. It is best to entrust the cleaning of the tray to a family member, and if this is not possible, clean it with gloves and immediately wash it with disinfectants.

Wash your hands thoroughly before eating and after returning from the street, put off gardening work. Do not touch raw meat, and be sure to cook it for a long time before eating.