sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease

Also known as: sCJD

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July 20, 2026

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Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD) is a rare, fatal, and degenerative disease affecting the central nervous system. It occurs randomly in about one in a million people worldwide. sCJD is a type of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy, caused by an abnormal protein called a prion. These prions accumulate in nerve cells, leading to neurodegeneration and a spongy appearance in the brain. Symptoms typically include dementia and involuntary movements, and the disease is usually fatal within a year of onset. sCJD accounts for at least 85% of all CJD cases, with the exact cause of the prion's appearance remaining unclear, possibly due to aging or spontaneous protein shape changes.1

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Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease
Types
…types of CJD: familial (fCJD), sporadic (sCJD), and acquired (aCJD). Both sCJD and aCJD may be further divided into subtypes. The most common sCJD subtype is sCJDMM1. Subtypes of aCJD include iatrogenic (iCJD) and variant (vCJD) forms of the disease (kuru is sometimes considered a third subtype of aCJD).
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…types of CJD: familial (fCJD), sporadic (sCJD), and acquired (aCJD). Both sCJD and aCJD may be further divided into subtypes. The most common sCJD subtype is sCJDMM1. Subtypes of aCJD include iatrogenic (iCJD) and variant (vCJD) forms of the disease (kuru is sometimes considered a third subtype of aCJD).
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