Pending Ringworm test -- what precautions to take?

Hi!

I don't know if anyone has been following my cat adoption saga, but here's the run down:

About 4 months ago, my boyfriend (a reluctant cat person, he just loves me very much so agreed to do this as the "price of admission" for moving in with me) adopted a cat from our local shelter who turned out to be semi-feral and very play (and not play) aggressive and a very poor fit to be an indoor only cat in a small city apartment. After trying to make it work unsuccessfully, we were able to re-home him and move on with our lives.

Fast forward until about 3 weeks ago -- my boyfriend and I (following some excellent advice given to us on this forum) found and adopted the greatest, sweetest cat from another local rescue group. When my boyfriend and I met her, we both just KNEW she was our cat, and even though I was told upfront that she was in a home with kittens who had ringworm (but were now symptom free), I figured that she was worth the risk (especially given that most adult cats are immune, or so I read ...)

I took her to the vet about a week ago, and he did notice she was missing a bit of fur on her ears. He said it wasn't anything to be concerned about -- and more likely was from playing roughly with another cat or from mild flea issue she had -- but told me because we knew that she had been exposed to ringworm, I could get a culture if I wanted to. (I did.)

TL;DR, What precautions should we be taking against the spread of Ringworm until we hear back from the vet, given that he thinks the hair loss on her ears was from something else? Right now we are just vacuuming a bit more frequently that usual (because of the fleas) and washing our hands after petting her. Do we need to do anything more than that?

Even if she does not have active ringworm, since she comes from a home where there is some, she may be carrying spores in her fur.  If it were me, I would immediately bathe her thoroughly with a shampoo containing ketoconazole and chlorhexadine to eradicate any spores she may be carrying.  One of these shampoos, "Pure Love," costs only $9.99 a bottle online -- you may be able to find it or one like it locally at a pet supply store or even Tractor Supply, if you have one near you.  It's much, much easier to PREVENT ringworm than to treat it!

http://www.petflow.com/product/pure-love/ketoconazole1-chlorhexidine2-shampoo-for-dogs-and-cats

We've had her for 2 1/2 weeks already, so I am worried that we might be a bit too late in terms of bathing her?

We do have a good vacuum with a HEPA filter, and even though the Cat has full run of the apartment, it's only two rooms, so even if we do have to do a big top to bottom clean, it shouldn't be too terrible? (No idea how we would isolate her if she had an active infection though...)

In my rescue experience over the years, I've been pretty blessed.  I brought home a little red tabby who broke with ringworm in the Petsmart adoption center our group was using.  The rescuer who brought him in originally was afraid to take him home and nobody else wanted to either.  At the time I didn't have an overcrowded situation and my cats were not stressed so I wasn't afraid to bring him home.  I didn't even isolate him after he got his medicated bath and cream treatment to his face, which was totally naked.  We also put him on PROGRAM, a flea preventative containing drug lufenuron, which is said to eliminate ringworm.  With the combination of baths every 3-5 days, the cream on his active spots, and Program, he cleared up quickly.  None of the other cats caught ringworm from him either. I fell in love with him and he never did go back to Petsmart!  He lived out his life with me, for many years, until his heart failed in old age, and now he is in a place of honor surrounded by azalea bushes. RIP Tabasco.

This is something I probably should have mentioned, but my Serafina is an only cat with us, so there is no fear of her transmitting it to any other animals. She's also an adult (roughly two-years old), medium haired "buff" (light orange) tabby cat and her coat is just beautiful -- the only patches where she is missing fur is just two little spots on her ears.

I've been keeping an eye on her ears ever since the vet visit, and I haven't noticed them getting worse. The little patches where there is no fur are either staying the same or getting better -- so I am hopeful the cause was something other than ringworm (over scratching from her previous flea problem?)

Just a quick update -- heard back from the vet and Ringworm test is negative! Hurrah!