2 Die in Colo. of Disease Like Mad Cow Illness

Two patients have died at a Colorado hospital this year of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, an illness similar to mad cow disease, and there is concern other patients may have been exposed, a hospital spokeswoman said Friday.

The patients, both older than 60, died in January and February at Exempla St. Joseph Hospital, said Steve Krizman, a spokesman for Kaiser-Permanente, the health maintenance organization that cared for them.

Hospital spokeswoman Kathleen Ferguson said at least six other patients may have been exposed to Creutzfeldt-Jakob through surgical instruments used while treating one of the two who died.

The instruments were sterilized after each use, but no studies have been done to show whether sterilization procedures are effective against the proteins that cause the disease, said Dr. Cathy van Blerkom, chairwoman of the hospital’s Department of Pathology and Infection Control.

“There are a lot of unknowns in this disease,” she said.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease attacks the brain, killing cells and creating gaps in tissue. The brain takes on a sponge-like appearance. Early symptoms include memory loss, mood changes and lack of coordination. The disease later causes shakiness and dementia. Victims are eventually unable to move or speak.