title: An alarming presentation of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease following a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.
abstract: Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE), also known as prion diseases, are characterized by rapid and fatal neurological decline. They not only detrimentally affect the patient, but also present additional challenges to healthcare systems due to the infectivity of the tissues and the difficulty of inactivating the prion. The most common TSE is Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), which can occur after familial, spontaneous or acquired transmission. TSEs received more attention after the development of variant CJD (vCJD), also known as Mad Cow Disease, in the UK during the mid-1990s. Unlike familial or spontaneous CJD, this variant was connected to consumption of cattle contaminated with the prion disease, bovine spongiform encephalopathy.This development increased interest in the etiology of CJD and other TSEs and the risk it presents as an infectious disease. The following details the case of a 59-year-old male infected with CJD presented to our level II trauma center for treatment following a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.
authors.affiliation: Lancaster General Health, Lancaster, PA, USA. Electronic address: charnish2@lghealth.org.
authors.forename: Carissa
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Harnish
authors.affiliation: Lancaster General Health, Lancaster, PA, USA. Electronic address: bgross2@lghealth.org.
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gross
authors.affiliation: Lancaster General Health, Lancaster, PA, USA. Electronic address: kateritt@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Katelyn
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Rittenhouse
authors.affiliation: Lancaster General Health, Lancaster, PA, USA. Electronic address: kbupp2@lghealth.org.
authors.forename: Katherine
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bupp
authors.affiliation: Lancaster General Health, Lancaster, PA, USA. Electronic address: avellucci2@lghealth.org.
authors.forename: Ashley
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vellucci
authors.affiliation: Lancaster General Health, Lancaster, PA, USA. Electronic address: janderson3@lghealth.org.
authors.forename: Jeffrey
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.affiliation: Lancaster General Health, Lancaster, PA, USA. Electronic address: DKRiley@lghealth.org.
authors.forename: Deborah
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Riley
authors.affiliation: Lancaster General Health, Lancaster, PA, USA. Electronic address: frogers2@lghealth.org.
authors.forename: Frederick B
authors.initials: FB
authors.lastname: Rogers
mesh_terms: D007562:Creutzfeldt-Jakob Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission; D057286:Electronic Health Records; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D019983:Guideline Adherence; D020197:Head Injuries, Penetrating / Q000382:microbiology / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D017053:Infection Control / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D008487:Medical History Taking; D008875:Middle Aged; D013406:Suicide, Attempted; D014193:Trauma Centers; D014948:Wounds, Gunshot / Q000382:microbiology / Q000628:therapy*
keywords: Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease; Trauma