(kroyts′fĕlt-yah′kōp )

[Hans Gerhard Creutzfeldt, 1885-1964; Alfons Maria Jakob, 1884-1931, Ger. psychiatrists]
ABBR: CJD A central nervous system disease that causes rapidly progressive dementia usually accompanied by muscle jerking, difficulty walking, and aphasia. The causative agent is a prion, an infectious protein that causes brain proteins in infected people to misfold. It can be transmitted from person-to-person by organ transplantation, transfusion, or the donation of other products. It is uniformly fatal in less than a year.
The causative agent of CJD is extremely resistant to most sterilization procedures.
SEE: Standard Precautions Appendix