Cats and kittens can be very nice pets but their bite, even the slightest one, is extremely dangerous a person's health, according to a recent study.
The study found that cats can inject bacteria deep into human's joints and tissue where there is perfect breathing ground for infection. When this happens, the person who has been bitten, no matter how little, should immediately see a doctor. The researchers also revealed that middle-aged women are more likely to be bitten by cats but did not mention in particular why this is so. They simply advised middle-aged women to be wary when stroking their cats because their bite can be very dangerous.
Researchers involved in the study have identified 193 patients with cat bites to the hand in the last three years and discovered that 57 of them were hospitalized within a span of three days. Of these, 38 patients needed to have their wounds flushed out surgically and infected tissue had to be removed. The study which was published in the Journal of Hand Surgery, also revealed that approximately 69 percent of the patients were female, with an average age of 49.
Lead study author Dr. Brian Carlsen, of the Mayo Clinic, said: "Dogs' teeth are blunter, so they don't tend to penetrate as deeply and they tend to leave a larger wound after they bite. Cats' teeth are sharp and they can penetrate very deeply, they can seen bacteria in the joint and tendon sheaths. Cat bites look very benign, but as we know it and as the study shows, they are not. They can be very serious."
