A parasite called Toxoplasma gondii causes a disease known as toxoplasmosis. Most adults have already had toxoplasmosis; toxoplasmosis shows few or no symptoms 90% of the time. However, pregnant women and individuals with weakened immune systems should be cautious.

Because macaques can carry a virus that is deadly to humans, workers need to know how to reduce their risk of exposure as well as what to do if they get exposed.

Rubella (German Measles) is a highly contagious viral illness with symptoms very similar to rubeola (red measles, commonly referred to simply as "measles") but differs in the severity of symptoms and length of illness. The most serious threat of rubella is to the pregnant female who has never had rubella. If exposed to rubella, she can contract the disease which can cause serious problems for the unborn baby.

Respiratory Syncytial Virus or RSV is one of the many cold-type upper respiratory infections that most of us acquire during the cold and flu season. For premature or medically-frail infants, the infection could become very serious, even fatal.  RSV is a paramyxovirus and there are 2 types, A and B.

Typically, there is no serious complication for a pregnant woman or her baby from exposure to a person with Parvovirus B19, or "Fifth" disease. About 50% of women are already immune to Parvovirus B19, so these women and their babies are protected from infection and illness. Even if a woman is susceptible and gets infected with Parvovirus B19, she usually experiences only a mild illness. Likewise, her unborn baby usually does not have any problems attributable to a Parvovirus B19 infection.

Parvovirus B-19 infection is also known as Fifth Disease. Fifth Disease is usually a mild illness that resolves without medical treatment among children and adults who are otherwise healthy. However, pregnant women who are infected with Parvovirus during early pregnancy have a 5% risk of miscarriage. (Also see article Parvovirus B19 Exposure in Pregnancy.)

VUMC faculty and staff born after 1956 are required to be vaccinated against measles unless they have laboratory-proven immunity to measles.

Anyone who is at risk for contact with blood or other potentially infectious materials is strongly encouraged to receive the hepatitis B vaccine series.