In Humans, Mad Cow Variant Hard to Detect
The first U.S. case of mad cow disease draws attention to the difficulty of detecting variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob, the human form of the disease, which is contracted by eating contaminated beef products. Doctors must distinguish potential cases of variant CJD from other closely related conditions, such as Alzheimer's. NPR's Joanne Silberner reports.
Related NPR Stories
Expanded Coverage on Mad Cow and Variant CJD Jan. 1, 2004
Comments
Discussions for this story are now closed. Please see the Community FAQ for more information.