What is Creutzfeld-Jakob Disease (CJD)?
CJD is a slow degenerative disease of humans that affects the central nervous system, causing dysfunction, progressive dementia, vacuolar degeneration of the brain, and death. CJD occurs throughout the world at a rate of about 1-2 cases per million people per year. We have CJD in the United States and the incidence is also about 1 case per million per year. The rate of CJD in the U.K. is the same as in the U.S.A. Also, the rate of CJD cases in Australia and New Zealand where neither BSE or scrapie (sheep) has been reported, is also about 1 case per million people per year. Also, U.S. farmers or veterinarians are not at any higher risk of CJD than the general population. Additionally, scrapie has existed in the U.K. sheep population for 200 years and has never been shown to be a human health risk.
