Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease
noun
Creutz·feldt-Ja·kob disease
ˈkrȯits-ˌfelt-ˈyä-(ˌ)kōb- 
variants
or less commonly Creutzfeld-Jakob disease
: a rare progressive fatal encephalopathy caused by a prion and marked by development of porous brain tissue, premature dementia in middle age, and gradual loss of muscular coordination
Examples of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The Hood River County Health Department confirmed the deaths on April 14 and said over the last eight months, there have been one confirmed and two probable cases of the illness, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
—
Jonathan Limehouse, USA Today, 20 Apr. 2025
Since then, public health officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and several states have been paying close attention to clusters of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease — investigating outbreaks to determine whether infected deer, elk or moose meat was involved.
—Susanne Rust, Los Angeles Times, 16 Apr. 2025
Jones battled Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease for nearly three years, according to Illinois.
—Colleen Kane, Chicago Tribune, 18 Feb. 2025
She was drawn to the topic after a neighbor and friend fell ill with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and died within weeks.
—Christie Wilcox, science.org, 27 Dec. 2024
These include mad cow disease, which affects mostly cattle, scrapie, which affects sheep, and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, which kills about 350 Americans a year ‒ most within months of their first symptom.
—Karen Weintraub, USA TODAY, 27 June 2024
In people, the disease is fatal and called Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
—Susanne Rust, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2024
Some of the 1,848 patients who received cadaver hormone developed Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), a rare but always fatal brain disorder caused by a type of prion known as PrP-amyloid plaques.
—Erin Prater, Fortune Well, 1 Feb. 2024
The treatment approach was discontinued after cases of a rare brain disorder called Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease were found to be associated with the administration of contaminated human growth hormone from cadavers.
—Jacqueline Howard, CNN, 29 Jan. 2024
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Jonathan Limehouse, USA Today, 20 Apr. 2025
Since then, public health officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and several states have been paying close attention to clusters of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease — investigating outbreaks to determine whether infected deer, elk or moose meat was involved.
—Susanne Rust, Los Angeles Times, 16 Apr. 2025
Jones battled Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease for nearly three years, according to Illinois.
—Colleen Kane, Chicago Tribune, 18 Feb. 2025
She was drawn to the topic after a neighbor and friend fell ill with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and died within weeks.
—Christie Wilcox, science.org, 27 Dec. 2024
These include mad cow disease, which affects mostly cattle, scrapie, which affects sheep, and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, which kills about 350 Americans a year ‒ most within months of their first symptom.
—Karen Weintraub, USA TODAY, 27 June 2024
In people, the disease is fatal and called Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
—Susanne Rust, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2024
Some of the 1,848 patients who received cadaver hormone developed Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), a rare but always fatal brain disorder caused by a type of prion known as PrP-amyloid plaques.
—Erin Prater, Fortune Well, 1 Feb. 2024
The treatment approach was discontinued after cases of a rare brain disorder called Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease were found to be associated with the administration of contaminated human growth hormone from cadavers.
—Jacqueline Howard, CNN, 29 Jan. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Creutzfeldt-Jakob%20disease. Accessed 5 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease
noun
Creutz·feldt-Ja·kob disease
variants
also Creutzfeld-Jakob disease
: a rare progressive fatal prion disease marked by the development of porous brain tissue, premature dementia in middle age, and gradual loss of muscular coordination
—abbreviation CJD
called also Jakob-Creutzfeldt disease
see variant creutzfeldt-jakob diseaseLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
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