One hundred and thirty-nine cases of variant Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (vCJD) have been documented since the first case was reported in March 1996, the World Health Organization says. Only 1 case, involving a podiatrist who studied in England, has been reported in Canada (CMAJ 2002;167 [6]:680). By November 2002, 129 cases had been reported in the United Kingdom, 6 in France, and 1 each in Ireland, Italy and the US.
WHO says the vCJD cases are proving far different from the classical presentation of CJD because younger people are being affected (average age of 29 years vs. 65 years) and there is a longer duration of illness (14 months vs. 4.5 months).
Bovine spongiform encephalopathy, the cattle-borne disease thought responsible for the spread of vCJD in humans, had been confirmed in 181 376 cattle in the UK by November 2002; only 3286 cases have been reported in all other countries, and none in Canada.
However, concern about vCJD is so widespread that WHO (www.who.int, click on Media Centre) has issued a list of 8 questions consumers should ask if worried about infection. — CMAJ