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Symptoms of Cat Scratch Fever
By: Alfred, Little Cat A, and Little Cat C
Many folks wonder what the symptoms of Cat Scratch
Disease, also called Cat Scratch Fever are in humans.
In this article we will give you the most common symptoms
of Cat Scratch Disease. Please contact your doctor
if for any reason you believe you may have contracted
this disease.
Most people who contract Cat Scratch Disease have been in
contact with a cat or kitten, but not all of these people
recall being bitten or scratched. All it really takes to
contract this disease is for a kitten to lick your finger,
and then you at some point rub an open wound or eat some
food to transfer the bacteria. This is one reason it is
important to always wash your hands after playing with any
animal.
Once you become infected, a small bump that looks like a
blister will develop at the entrance site of the bacteria
into your body. This bump doesn't hurt or itch. It is called
an inoculation lesion and may be mistaken for a bug bite. It
will most likely appear on the hands, arms, head or scalp.
Within a couple of weeks the lymph nodes/glands surrounding
the lesion will swell up and become tender. The lymph nodes
are a part of the immune system and will swell if you have
an infection or sickness. For example if you have an
inoculation lesion on your jaw, the glands in your neck may
swell.
The most likely lymph nodes to become swollen are in your
armpits and in your neck region. But if you have a lesion on
your leg the glands or lymph nodes near your private parts
may swell. The swollen lymph nodes can be from half an inch
to two inches in diameter and may be surrounded by red
swollen skin with swelling under the surface of the skin.
Sometimes the lymph nodes will drain infected matter.
In adolescents and children, the major symptom of Cat
Scratch Fever is swollen glands or lymph nodes and the
illness itself is usually mild. Other symptoms from the
disease can include a fever of less than one hundred and one
degrees Fahrenheit (thirty-eight degrees Celsius), loss of
appetite, fatigue, headache, rash, sore throat and a general
feeling of illness.
Severe symptoms from Cat Scratch Disease are rare but do
occur. The symptoms of a severe case of Cat Scratch Disease
and its complications are an infection of the spleen, liver,
bones, joints or lungs. This will be accompanied by a high
fever without other symptoms.
In some cases an eye infection called Parinaud
Oculoglandular Syndrome can result from Cat Scratch Disease.
The symptoms include a small sore on the membrane lining of
the eye or inner eyelid called a conjunctiva, eye redness,
and swollen lymph nodes/glands in the front ear area.
In other cases someone could develop inflammation of the
brain or seizures but this is rare. All of the resulting
complications and the disease itself will usually resolve
with proper treatment, with no lasting side effects or
illness.
See also: Preventing Cat
Scratch Fever
Little Cat C and Little Cat A
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