Mystery brain disease spreading in US county, claims two lives: Can it be identified early?

Three cases and two deaths of a serious brain disease have been identified in northern Oregon in the last 8 months, officials in Hood River County have confirmed.


"Two people in Oregon have died of a rare brain disorder that causes dementia-like symptoms without a clear cause or possible link tying the deaths together," The Daily Mail reported.

"We’re trying to look at any common risk factors that might link these cases … but it’s pretty hard in some cases to come up with what the real cause is," Trish Elliott, director of Hood River County Health Department told the media.


All about this brain disease

The media reported the disease to be Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), a rare disease that affects about 350 Americans every year. CJD is raising concern in the U.S. due to a small but steady number of cases reported annually. Although it's not contagious through casual contact, sporadic cases (the most common form) occur without known cause, while rare variant CJD may be linked to infected beef consumption. Recent studies suggest slight upticks in reported cases, possibly due to better diagnostics or aging populations. The CDC continues monitoring for unusual patterns, but experts emphasize there's no widespread outbreak—CJD remains extremely rare, with about 300 cases reported each year across the U.S.


Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD) is a rare, degenerative, and fatal brain disorder that progresses rapidly and affects about 1 in a million people per year worldwide. It's part of a group of diseases known as prion diseases, where normal proteins in the brain fold abnormally, leading to severe brain damage.


In this disease, a protein called a prion misfolds and triggers a chain reaction, causing other normal prion proteins in the brain to also misfold. These misfolded proteins build up in the brain and destroy brain cells, creating sponge-like holes in the brain tissue. This leads to rapid mental deterioration, memory loss, movement issues, and eventually coma and death.


CJD typically affects people between 55 and 75 years old, although variant CJD has occurred in younger individuals. There’s no known environmental trigger for sporadic cases, but a family history or certain gene mutations can increase risk.

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The common symptoms of CJD are rapid memory loss, difficulty thinking and concentrating, poor coordination or balance, muscle stiffness or twitching, personality changes, vision problems and coma


"There is unfortunately no cure for vCJD. No specific therapy slows or stops the disease's progression once symptoms begin. Treatment involves providing supportive care to help make the person more comfortable as their illness progresses," the US CDC advises.