Definition

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD; pronounced KROITS-felt-YAH-kop) is a highly infectious disease that affects the nervous system. It is related to a condition known as "mad cow disease."

Description

Before 1995 CJD was little known outside the medical profession. In fact, many doctors knew little about it and few of them had ever seen a case. In 1995 that situation changed, when a new form of the disease was discovered. That form is called "mad cow disease." It seemed that people could contract a new form of CJD by eating beef from cows that had "mad cow disease." Before long, CJD was one of the most talked about diseases in the world. In spite of that fact, relatively few people actually died from the new form of CJD.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease was first described in the 1920s. It affects the nervous system and progresses very rapidly. The major sign is...