Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in two clinically and virologically controlled Brazilian HIV patients who progressed rapidly to dementia: case reports and literature review.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-associated neurocognitive disorders are the main cause of cognitive decline and dementia in people living with HIV (PLHIV). However, extensive workup should be done in patients with rapidly progressive dementia (RPD) and HIV, especially when secondary infection in the central nervous system (CNS) is ruled out. Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD) is the main cause of RPD in non-HIV patients. It is a fatal neurodegenerative condition caused by prions that mainly affects elderly patients. Our objective is to describe two cases of PLHIV presenting with controlled infections and sCJD, and to review the literature. Our patients were younger than expected for sCJD and one of them had a longer disease course. As aging is expected to occur earlier in PLHIV, sCJD must be excluded in younger PLHIV presenting with RPD and without CNS infection.

The worst is yet to come: probable sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in a well-controlled HIV patient.

We describe a case of probable sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in the setting of well-controlled HIV and discuss whether exist, in fact, HIV-related factors that may predispose to the development of prion disease. To the best of our knowledge, this is the third report of this association.

Case series of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in a third-level hospital in Quito.

BACKGROUND: Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease is a rare and fatal neurodegenerative disorder that affects mammals and humans. The prevalence of this disease in the United States is 0.5 to 1 per million inhabitants. So far in Ecuador, we do not know what the prevalence or incidence is, and only one case report has been written. CASE PRESENTATION: We present a case series of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in a third-level hospital in Quito. The average age of symptom onset in our patients was 58.8 years. The male to female ratio was 1:1. Two patients began with cognitive/behavioral symptoms, while 4 patients began with focal neurological signs; 1 case with ataxia, 2 with gait disorders and 1 with vertigo and headache. All of the patients had the clinical features established by the World Health Organization. In addition, the entire cohort was positive for the 14-3-3 protein in cerebrospinal fluid, and had high signal abnormalities in caudate and putamen nucleus in DWI and FLAIR IRM. Only in one case, did we reach a definitive diagnosis through a pathological study. All other cases had a probable diagnosis. In this series of cases, 6 out of 6 patients died. The average time from the onset of the symptoms to death in this cohort was 13 months. CONCLUSION: This is the first report of a series of cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in Quito. Although definitive diagnosis must be histopathological, there are ancillary tests currently available that have allowed us to obtain a diagnosis of the disease.

Encefalopatía espongiforme transmisible humana: reporte de un caso / Human transmissible spongiform encephalopathy: case report

Se presenta el caso de una mujer de 64 años con un cuadro clínico de ocho meses de duración, consistente en deterioro motor y cognitivo, que progresó rápidamente. Recibió tratamiento con quinacrina sin obtener beneficios y falleció en estado terminal, por choque séptico secundario a bronconeumonía por broncoaspiración. El cerebro fue donado para investigación y su estudio histopatológico reveló la presencia de lesiones espongiformes, astrogliosis y depósitos de proteína priónica (PrPRes) confirmados por Western blot. Todos estos rasgos se consideran característicos de la enfermedad por priones. Con este caso, no solo se informa sobre una enfermedad infrecuente en la casuística colombiana, sino que por primera vez en el país se usan simultáneamente la inmunohistoquímica y el Western blot como herramientas para el diagnóstico de estas enfermedades.

We report the case of a 64 year-old woman with motor and cognitive deterioration that progressed rapidly during eight months. She was unsuccessfully treated with quinacrine, and died in a terminal status, by septic shock secondary to bronchopneumonia by broncho-aspiration. The brain was donated for research and the histopathological analysis showed spongiform changes, astrogliosis and prion protein (PrPRes) deposits, confirmed by Western blot (WB). These features are considered characteristic of prion diseases, which are uncommon in Colombia. We highlight that its diagnosis was made for the first time in this country by the simultaneous use of immunohistochemistry and Western blot.

MM1+2C sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease presenting as rapidly progressive nonfluent aphasia.

We report a 77-year-old man, presenting with progressive aphasia as an initial symptom, who developed severe dementia over the course of 20 months. Frontal cortex PrPSc western blot was type 2 and codon 129 was MM; brain neuropathology showed cortical vacuoles with perivacuolar PrP immunostaining characteristic of MM2C. Cerebellum showed focal coarse, patchy staining in different sections of the molecular layer, diffuse fine punctuate and coarse PrP immunopositive deposits in the granule cell layer, and focal synaptic immunostaining in the molecular layer, suggestive of MM1+2C by histotyping. This clinical presentation has not yet been described in an MM1+2C subtype by histotyping.

Aspectos clínicos e radiológicos da doença de Creutzfeldt-Jakob / Clinical and radiological aspects of creutzfeldt-jakob disease

O objetivo deste trabalho é revisar os aspectos clínicos e radiológicos da Doença de Creutzfeldt-Jakob. Esta cursa com demência progressiva e costuma ser fatal em um ano do início dos sintomas. Trata-se de uma patologia infecciosa de diagnóstico definitivo histopatológico. Métodos diagnósticos têm sido estudados a fim de prevenir sua transmissão precocemente. Dentre esses, tem se observado boa correlação clínica com a Ressonância Nuclear Magnética.

The goal of this paper is to review the clinical and radiological aspects of Creutfeldt-Jakob Disease. This presents with progressive dementia and is usually fatal within a year of the onset of symptoms. It is an infectious disease which definitive diagnostic is histopathological. Diagnostic methods have been studied in order to prevent its transmission by detecting it early. Among these methods has been observed good clinical correlation with Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

[Clinical and pathologic identification of different forms of Creutzfeldt Jakob disease in Chile]. / Identificación clínica y patológica de las diversas formas de la enfermedad de Creutzfeldt Jakob en Chile.

BACKGROUND: The identification of clinical and pathological forms of Creutzfeldt Jakob Disease (CJD) started with the first cases of the disease. Genetic and biomolecular prion status assessment are allowing now a better classification. AIM: To identify the clinical forms of the disease that exist in Chile, based on clinical and neuropathological data. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Review of records of 40 patients with CJD in whom a complete history, clinical details and neuropathological studies were available. Clinical aspects were grouped into five categories: behavioral and cognitive changes, sleep and alertness, visual impairment, motor disturbances, myoclonus and epilepsy. The neuropathological examination in each case allowed us to evaluate the damage of 13 areas of the central nervous system. RESULTS: Five forms of CJD were identified. The classic form was present in 28 patients (70%), the Heidenhain form was present in five (12.5%), the ataxic form in four (10%), the form with Kuru plaques in two (5%) and the Vacuolar was present in one patient (2.5%). CONCLUSIONS: The variety and forms of CJD in Chile do not differ substantially from those found abroad.

Identificación clínica y patológica de las diversas formas de la enfermedad de Creutzfeldt Jakob en Chile / Clinical and pathologic identification of different forms of Creutzfeldt Jakob disease in Chile

Background: The identification of clinical and pathological forms of Creutzfeldt Jakob Disease (CJD) started with the first cases of the disease. Genetic and biomolecular prion status assessment are allowing now a better classification. Aim: To identify the clinical forms of the disease that exist in Chile, based on clinical and neuropathological data. Patients and Methods: Review of records of 40 patients with CJD in whom a complete history, clinical details and neuropathological studies were available. Clinical aspects were grouped into five categories: behavioral and cognitive changes, sleep and alertness, visual impairment, motor disturbances, myoclonus and epilepsy. The neuropathological examination in each case allowed us to evaluate the damage of 13 areas of the central nervous system. Results: Five forms of CJD were identified. The classic form was present in 28 patients (70%), the Heidenhain form was present in five (12.5%), the ataxic form in four (10%), the form with Kuru plaques in two (5%) and the Vacuolar was present in one patient (2.5%). Conclusions: The variety and forms of CJD in Chile do not differ substantially from those found abroad.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in Mexico.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is classified within the group of transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE). It is a rapidly progressive illness that affects mental functions. The average age of onset is 50 years. Various tests can help orient the clinical diagnosis, but the confirmatory test is still the post mortem analysis. The aim of this study was to describe the epidemiological, clinical and histopathological characteristics of patients diagnosed as suffering from CJD, at the National Institute of Neurology and Neurosurgery of Mexico (NINN). An observational, descriptive and transversal study was conducted. We collected information concerning these cases from the Departments of Epidemiology and Pathology, as well as the clinical charts of the patients with a diagnosis of CJD. Fifteen cases were registered of which three CJD cases were definite, five probable cases were identified, and seven were possible. The average age of the patients was 49 years. Two definite cases were female and one was male. It is important to improve the systems for surveillance of this type of disease and, furthermore, to permit greater accessibility to laboratories where the procedures necessary for supporting diagnosis can be followed.

Pseudodemencia como forma de presentación de la enfermedad de Creutzfeldt-Jakob / Pseudodementia as presentation form of the Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease

Se presentan dos casos de enfermedad de Creutzfeldt-Jakob que fueron diagnosticadas como pseudodemencias. Eran mujeres con trastornos de conducta; el examen mostró ausencia de signos neurológicos categóricos, actitudes anormales y discordancias en los rendimientos neuropsicologicos; las tomografías computadas cerebrales (TAC) y, en un caso el EEG fueron normales. El seguimiento clínico, EEG y con resonancia nuclear magnética cerebral permitieron diagnosticar enfermedad de Creutzfeldt-Jakob probable. Se postula que la pseudodemencia puede ser considerada un síndrome con importantes factores psicosociales, a los cuales puede sumarse como desencadenante una patología cerebral de magnitud moderada.

Two female patients with Creutzfeldt-Jakob’s disease whose initial diagnosis was pseudodementia are reported. Both of them began with abnormal behaviour that could have had relation to biographic circumstances. They had normal or slightly abnormal neurological signs, abnormal attitudes and significant discordances in the neuropsychological performance. The CT scan (and the EGG in the second d case) were normal. However, the clinical course, serial EGG and MRI led us to diagnose probable Creutzfeldt-Jakob’s disease. It is concluded than pseudodemencia is a syndrome with important psycho-social factors; occasionally a low magnitude cerebral pathology may act as a triggering factor.

Estudo retrospectivo da doença de Creutzfeldt-Jakob diagnosticada no norte de Portugal entre 1993-2002: características demográficas, clínicas e neuropatológicas / A retrospective study of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in North of Portugal 1993-2002: demographic, clinical and neuropathological features

INTRODUÇÃO E OBJETIVO: Descrição das características demográficas, clinicas e neuropatológicas de 11 doentes com doença de Creutzfeldt-Jakob (DCJ). MÉTODO: Revisão clínica e neuropatológica de doentes com DCJ diagnosticados entre 1993 e 2002 em hospitais do Norte de Portugal. RESULTADOS: Foram identificados 11 doentes (4 do sexo feminino; idade média de início dos sintomas, 64 anos; média de duração da doença, 8 meses). Todos apresentaram síndrome demencial progressiva associada a mioclonias, sendo a síndrome cerebelar a forma de apresentação inicial em quatro deles. O estudo neuropatológico revelou sempre espongiose e gliose reativa associada a perda neuronal. O estudo imunocitoquímico para proteína priônica (PrP) foi positivo nos oito casos em que foi executado. CONCLUSÃO: O grupo de doentes descritos constitui uma série clinica representativa da heterogeneidade de fenótipos possíveis da DCJ esporádica. O estudo neuropatológico é ainda indispensável para o diagnóstico definitivo da doença

[A retrospective study of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in North of Portugal 1993-2002: demographic, clinical and neuropathological features]. / Estudo retrospectivo da doença de Creutzfeldt-Jakob diagnosticada no norte de Portugal entre 1993-2002: características demográficas, clínicas e neuropatológicas.

OBJECTIVE: Description of the demographic, clinical and neuropathological features of 11 cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). METHOD: Review of the clinical and neuropathological features of patients with CJD diagnosed in hospitals in the North of Portugal between 1993 and 2002. RESULTS: Eleven patients were identified, 4 females: mean age of onset of symptoms--64 years, mean duration of disease--8 months. All presented with a syndrome of progressive dementia with myoclonus, with four patients presenting with cerebellar signs. Neuropathological examination of brain at autopsy showed spongiosis and reactive gliosis associated with neuronal loss. In eight cases immunocytochemistry for prion protein (PrP) was carried out and was positive. CONCLUSION: The group of patients described represents the heterogeneity of the clinical phenotypes possible in CJD. Neuropathological examination is still indispensable to make the definitive diagnosis of the disease.

Insomnia associated with thalamic involvement in E200K Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

BACKGROUND: Insomnia with predominant thalamic involvement and minor cortical and cerebellar pathologic changes is not characteristic of familial Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) but is a hallmark of fatal familial insomnia. OBJECTIVE: To report a 53-year-old woman with intractable insomnia as her initial symptom of disease. METHODS: The authors characterized clinical, pathologic, and molecular features of the disease using EEG, polysomnography, neurohistology, Western blotting, protein sequencing, and prion protein (PrP) gene (PRNP) analysis. RESULTS: The patient developed dysgraphia, dysarthria, bulimia, myoclonus, memory loss, visual hallucinations, and opisthotonos, as well as pyramidal, extrapyramidal, and cerebellar signs. Polysomnographic studies showed an absence of stages 3 and 4, and REM. She died 8 months after onset. On neuropathologic examination, there was major thalamic involvement characterized by neuronal loss, spongiform changes, and prominent gliosis. The inferior olivary nuclei exhibited chromatolysis, neuronal loss, and gliosis. Spongiform changes were mild in the neocortex and not evident in the cerebellum. PrP immunopositivity was present in these areas as well as in the thalamus. PRNP analysis showed the haplotype E200K-129M. Western blot analysis showed the presence of proteinase K (PK)-resistant PrP (PrP(sc)) with the nonglycosylated isoform of approximately 21 kd, corresponding in size to that of type 1 PrP(sc). N-terminal protein sequencing demonstrated PK cleavage sites at glycine (G) 82 and G78, as previously reported in CJD with the E200K-129 M haplotype. CONCLUSIONS: Insomnia may be a prominent early symptom in cases of CJD linked to the E200K-129M haplotype in which the thalamus is severely affected.

[Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease: case report with spinal cord involvement]. / Doença de Creutzfeldt-Jakob: a propósito de um caso com comprometimento medular.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is the most common subacute transmissible spongiform encephalopathy. Approximately 85% of the cases are sporadic. The remaining 15% consist of genetic and iatrogenic forms. We report a sporadic form of CJD with spinal cord involvement and a clinical manifestation characterized by dementia and cerebellar syndrome, myofasciculation with absent reflexes and seizures. The two last manifestations are rare. The clinical hypothesis was probable CJD which was confirmed with autopsy and immunohistochemistry. We conclude that CJD should always be suspected when rapidly progressive dementia occurs and the absence of pyramidal or extrapyramidal signs suggest a spinal cord and/or peripheral nerve involvement.

Doença de Creutzfeldt-Jakob: a propósito de um caso com comprometimento medular / Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease: case report with spinal cord involvement

A doença de Creutzfeldt-Jakob (DCJ) é a encefalopatia espongiforme subaguda transmissível mais frequente nos seres humanos. Aproximadamente 85 por cento dos casos pertencem à forma esporádica da doença. Os outros 15 por cento consistem na forma genética e iatrogênica. Relatamos o caso de uma paciente com a forma esporádica da doença de Creutzfeldt-Jakob, com comprometimento medular e apresentaçäo clínica caracterizada por síndrome demencial e cerebelar, miofasciculaçäo com arreflexia difusa e crises convulsivas do tipo tônico-clônico generalizada. É rara a associaçäo das duas últimas manifestaçöes clínicas. O caso foi considerado como provável DCJ até confirmaçäo por autópsia e imunohistoquímica. Concluímos que se deve sempre pensar na DCJ em pacientes que apresentam demência rapidamente progressiva e, na ausência de sinais piramidais ou extrapiramidais, pensar em acometimento periférico e/ou medular

Diffusion-weighted MRI in two cases of familial Creutzfeldt--Jakob disease.

Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DWI) has been described as a useful tool for the diagnosis of sporadic Creutzfeldt--Jakob disease (CJD). To our knowledge, DWI abnormalities have not previously been reported in familial CJD. In two patients with familial CJD associated with distinct mutations at codon 183 and at codon 210 of the prion protein gene, DWI showed a high signal in the basal ganglia and in the cerebral cortex. These abnormalities are similar to those described in sporadic CJD. This observation expands the value of DWI for the diagnosis of some forms of familial CJD. It remains to be investigated whether this finding also holds for CJD associated with other mutations of the prion protein gene.

Enfermedad de CREUTZFELD-JAKOB: reporte de un caso en Cuba / Creutzfeld-Jakob disease: a case presentation in Cuba

Se presentó un paciente de 64 años de edad con diagnóstico histopatológico comprobado de enfermedad de Creutzfeld-Jakob a forma esporádica. Sus manifestaciones clínicas se interpretaron y trataron inicialmente como un parkisonismo plus, pues predominaban en su cuadro clínico manifestaciones extrapiramidales. La instalación y evolución rápida de su cuadro demencial, con fallecimiento posterior, aproximadamente 7 meses después, sugirió la presencia de enfermedad de Creutzfeld-Jakob. Se demostraron en estudios postmorten características neuropatológicas de dicha enfermedad. Se comprobó que no existían otros casos reportados en Cuba hasta este momento (AU)

Enfermedad de CREUTZFELD-JAKOB: reporte de un caso en Cuba / Creutzfeld-Jakob disease: a case presentation in Cuba

Se presentó un paciente de 64 años de edad con diagnóstico histopatológico comprobado de enfermedad de Creutzfeld-Jakob a forma esporádica. Sus manifestaciones clínicas se interpretaron y trataron inicialmente como un parkisonismo plus, pues predominaban en su cuadro clínico manifestaciones extrapiramidales. La instalación y evolución rápida de su cuadro demencial, con fallecimiento posterior, aproximadamente 7 meses después, sugirió la presencia de enfermedad de Creutzfeld-Jakob. Se demostraron en estudios postmorten características neuropatológicas de dicha enfermedad. Se comprobó que no existían otros casos reportados en Cuba hasta este momento

Enfermedad de Creutzfeldt-Jakob en Venezuela: informe de 10 casos y revisión de la literatura / The Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in Venezuela: report of 10 cases and revition of the literature

La enfermedad de Creutzfeldt-Jakob (ECJ) es una encefalopatía espongiforme transmisible infrecuente y de amplia distribución mundial. Su incidencia en Venezuela es desconocida y sólo 5 casos previos han sido publicados. Se presentan en este informe 10 casos estudiados en los últimos 27 años. La confirmación del diagnóstico fue realizada mediante el estudio histológico y estructural de muestras del cerebro y/o cerebelo, obtenidas por biopsia en 3 casos y por autopsia en 7. El promedio de edad fue de 60,1 años. El intervalo entre el inicio de los síntomas y muerte fue de 4,5 meses. Todos los pacientes presentaron un síndrome demencial rápidamente progresivo asociado a signos piramidales y extrapiramidales, mioclonos y cambios en el electroencefalograma. El examen histológico reveló en todos los casos degeneración espongiosa, astrogliosis y pérdida neuronal en la sustancia gris de la corteza cerebral, núcleos basales y cerebelo. Desde el punto de vista estructural, las áreas afectadas en 4 casos estudiados mostraron vacuolización extensa del neurópilo, degeneración neuronal y prolongaciones astrogliales con numerosos filamentos intermedios. Ningún caso tenía antecedente familiar ni causa iatrogénica probable de la enfermedad. Se plantea la posibilidad de un subregistro de la ECJ en Venezuela y la importancia epidemiológica que tiene el conocimiento de esta entidad clínico-patológica en el diagnóstico diferencial de los diferentes tipos de trastornos demenciales

Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. A clinico-neuropathological analysis of nine definite cases.

The authors have analyzed clinico-neuropathologically nine cases of the definite sporadic form of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). All cases were female, with mean age of 62.7 years. Eighty-nine percent of the patients exhibited prodromal and initial psychiatric symptoms; definite signs of dementia, and myoclonus were present in 100% of cases. The EEG was abnormal in all cases and pseudoperiodic paroxysms were present in 56% of the patients. Their evolution time ranged from 3 to 19 months. Neuropathologically, brain and cerebellar atrophy, spongiosis, astrocytosis and neuronal loss were present in 100% of the patients. In 5 (56%) of these 9 cases, prion protein (PrP) amyloid plaques were detected in the cerebellum, by optical- and electronmicroscopy. There was a positive correlation between the number of plaques and the evolution time. The authors outline the similarities of their cases in the elderly with the new variant of CJD described in young people.