Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease also known as CJD affects both men and women worldwide usually between the ages of 50 to 75 years. The officially stated mortality rate is one to two deaths per one million population per year. However, this figure appears to be an understatement as CJD is often misdiagnosed. In one study by Yale University researchers found 13% of Alzheimer patients were found upon autopsy to actually have CJD.

There are three forms of CJD: familial (genetic, about 10-15% of cases) � Sporadic (cause unknown, about 80-85% of cases) � Iatrogenic (through a medical procedure such as contaminated cadaver-derived growth hormones (GH), dura mater recipients, use of contaminated surgical instruments, and corneal transplant recipients, about 1% of cases)� While it is theoretically possible the infectious agent may be present in blood, there are no documented cases of transmission, by blood in humans.

CJD is a rare disease that affects the central nervous system. There are two types of CJD, classical and a new form, called variant CJD. � In 1998, Health Canada launched a national CJD surveillance system to monitor for the disease in Canada. This comprehensive surveillance system is one of the finest in the world.

There is extensive research going on with this disease and lots of questions that are unanswered at this point. Please visit the links to read more about this horrible fatal disease.











Here at this site, Families and friends share their sorrow, grief, anguish, and love to those who died from CJD.� This site is excellent for helping you to understand what the victims of this horrendous disease goes threw during their illness.