title: Is childhood cat ownership a risk factor for schizophrenia later in life?
abstract: Two previous studies suggested that childhood cat ownership is a possible risk factor for later developing schizophrenia or other serious mental illness. We therefore used an earlier, large NAMI questionnaire to try and replicate this finding. The results were the same, suggesting that cat ownership in childhood is significantly more common in families in which the child later becomes seriously mentally ill. If true, an explanatory mechanism may be Toxoplasma gondii. We urge our colleagues to try and replicate these findings to clarify whether childhood cat ownership is truly a risk factor for later schizophrenia.
authors.affiliation: Stanley Medical Research Institute, United States. Electronic address: torreyf@stanleyresearch.org.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fuller Torrey
authors.affiliation: Stanley Medical Research Institute, United States.
authors.forename: Wendy
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Simmons
authors.affiliation: Stanley Laboratory of Developmental Neurovirology, Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine, United States.
authors.forename: Robert H
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Yolken
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002415:Cats; D006801:Humans; D057805:Pets; D012307:Risk Factors; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: Bipolar disorder; Cat contact; Schizophrenia; Toxoplasma gondii; Toxoplasmosis