Nishmat's Women’s Health and HalachaIn memory of Chaya Mirel bat R' Avraham

  • Hebrew
  • English
  • Espnaol
  • Francais
  • donate
Menu
Side Bar

Toe fungus and mikveh

18 June, 2017

Question:

I developed a toe fungus after my last visit. I am not sure if it came from the mikvah or some place else but I have a strong feeling it was from wearing the mikvah slippers they provided.

Over the past few weeks I've been treating it with medications and I don't yet see drastic results but I was told it can take a very long time to get rid of.

I am due for my next mikvah visit tomorrow I would like to know a few things:

Will I contaminate the mikvah by going even though I'm treating it for two weeks now?

Would it be considered assur to go?

I am scared to come in contact with my husband even if it's allowed as I don't want him to catch it. Could the antifungal cream I'm using make me not contagious anymore?


Answer:

We are sorry to hear of your catching a fungus. That can happen in any public setting in which facilities are shared barefoot, and can happen even without such an exposure. In light of your concerns, we suggest preparing at home and bringing your own slippers. This will also minimize spread to others.

If you are concerned about your husband catching the fungus, you can wear socks when you are in contact, but more important, do not share socks or slippers with him.

Topical antifungal cream should prevent contagion shortly after application. It is not clear from your description if the fungus is on the skin of the toe or the toenail. If the former, and there is no improvement after a few weeks, then you should return to your physician. If it is in the nail, improvement takes months as it takes time for normal nail to grow. It is also not clear what treatment you are using. In all cases, if the problem does not appear to be improving you should consult with the health care provider with whom you began the treatment.


This internet service does not preclude, override or replace the psak of any rabbinical authority. It is the responsibility of the questioner to inform us of any previous consultation or ruling. As even slight variation in circumstances may have Halachic consequences, views expressed concerning one case may not be applied to other, seemingly similar cases. All health and health-related information contained within Nishmat's Women's Health & Halacha Web site is intended to be general in nature and should not be used as a substitute for consulting with your health care professional. The advice is intended to offer a basis for individuals to discuss their medical condition with their health care provider but not individual advice. Although every effort is made to ensure that the material within Nishmat's Women's Health & Halacha Web site is accurate and timely, it is provided for the convenience of the Web site user but should not be considered official. Advice for actual medical practice should be obtained from a licensed health care professional.

For further questions or comments: 

The Nishmat Women's Health and Halacha Site is a public service of Nishmat, The Jeanie Schottenstein Center for Advanced Torah Study for Women. This project and others like it are made possible by contributions from people like you. If you have benefited from the service, and wish to enable us to help others, click here to donate.


Users of Internet filtering services: This site discusses sensitive subjects that some services filter without visual indication. A page that appears 100% complete might actually be missing critical Jewish-law or medical information. To ensure that you view the pages accurately, ask the filtering service to whitelist all pages under yoatzot.org.


Accessibility Toolbar