by Alice M Crawford Md

Created on: October 22, 2006   Last Updated: April 29, 2009

Cat Scratches and Bites

All bites inflicted on humans either by individuals of the same species or by cats, dogs, reptiles, rodents, etc., represent approximately one percent of emergency room visits with an estimated yearly health care cost of more than thirty million dollars. Most cat wounds are caused by domestic animals. Stray cats are responsible for some of these injuries, usually inflicted while reacting out of fear as they are offered food or are touched by friendly and compassionate individuals. These wounds are of a wide variety, from the superficial non-bleeding scratches on hands or arms, well known by all cat owners, to the serious such as scrapes and cuts of fingers with involvement of small joints, nerves or blood vessels. The very serious injuries affecting eyes and eyelids, nose, lips or ears, with tears of the skin and other delicate tissues, require immediate medical attention and often, surgical repair.

The majority of wounds are sustained on the hands and forearms. Wounds on the face, scalp, ears and neck follow; less frequent are those suffered on legs, feet or the chest. The small and superficial non-bleeding wounds usually do not need more care other than thorough washing with tap water and soap and the application of a light dressing such as a band-aid if judged necessary.
When the lacerations are deeper, reaching beyond the very thin layers of the skin, the situation becomes serious because germs and dirt are always inoculated into deep tissues by the cat's teeth or claws. At this point, we should make sure that the animal's rabies shots are up to date. Also, because of soil contamination of deep wounds, tetanus immunization must be checked on the injured person and updated if necessary. The main point to remember is that if wounds caused by cats elicit blood, even very little, prompt medical attention must be sought.

Penetrating wounds are particularly serious when they affect tendons and joints, because these tissues defend themselves poorly against infections due to their limited blood supply. Immediate treatment is in order to prevent settling of infections that may cause serious or even fatal complications when diabetes or arteriosclerosis is present. Also when the responses of the immune system are diminished because of medical treatments for cancer, viral infections, prior removal of the spleen or other reasons. Unfortunately, many individuals do not seek early treatment after being injured: It is common for medical personnel to

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