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Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease among Physicians, Germany, 1993-2018

Peter Hermann, Johannes Treig, Steffen Unkel

    Emerging Infectious Diseases
    |July 21, 2020
    PubMed

    Insights

    Physicians in Germany may face a higher risk of developing sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD). Surveillance data shows an increasing trend of sCJD cases among doctors, warranting further investigation.

    Area of Science:

    • Neurology
    • Epidemiology
    • Public Health

    Background:

    • Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD) is a rare, fatal neurodegenerative prion disease.
    • Understanding potential occupational risks is crucial for disease prevention and control.

    Purpose of the Study:

    • To investigate the incidence of sCJD among physicians in Germany.
    • To identify any potential occupational risk factors associated with sCJD in the medical community.

    Main Methods:

    • Analysis of sCJD patient data from German surveillance units (1993-2016).
    • Inclusion of occupational information, specifically focusing on physicians.
    • Statistical analysis, including cumulative sum tests and comparison with the general population.

    Main Results:

    • A small but increasing proportion of sCJD cases were identified as physicians over time.
    • No specific medical specialties were disproportionately represented among physician cases.
    • An elevated rate of sCJD among physicians was observed in recent data (2017-2018).

    Conclusions:

    • The findings suggest a potential increased risk of sCJD among physicians in Germany.
    • The reasons for this potential association remain speculative.
    • Larger, multinational studies are required to confirm these findings and explore underlying causes.

    Keywords:
    Creutzfeldt-Jakob diseaseGermanyepidemiologyhealthcare professionsphysiciansprion diseasesprions and related diseasesrisk factors

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