The Hood River County Health Department (HRCHD) has confirmed one case and identified two probable cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) within the past eight months. Tragically, two of the individuals have died, and the third case is still undergoing testing for final confirmation.
This rare and fatal neurodegenerative illness affects approximately one to two people per million annually across the globe. In the United States, an estimated 350 cases are reported each year. For a county like Hood River, which is rural with a population of just 23,000, having three cases, in less than a year is statistically improbable.
Understanding Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease
CJD is a prion disease, which means it is caused by misfolded proteins that damage brain tissue, creating sponge-like holes.
According to Dr. Brian Appleby, director of the National Prion Disease Pathology Surveillance Center, diagnosis typically requires examining brain tissue under a microscope for specific lesions and abnormal protein deposits.
