Most infections begin by infecting one area of the body, such as the skin (as in the case of the skin infection ringworm) or the nasal cavity. We call this a local infection. However, sometimes infections can spread through the body in the bloodstream, affecting more than one part of the body. When this happens, we call it a systemic infection.
Systemic fungal infections can be very serious and require intensive and prolonged treatment. Unfortunately, the prognosis for cats with systemic fungal infections is worse than for cats with local infections.