This column was reviewed by William Shulaw, an Ohio State University Extension veterinarian specializing in cattle and sheep. The fatal neurological disease is often painful, and often includes delusions or hallucinations as part of its development. It's believed that people contracted this new variant by eating meat from BSE-infected animals.
Scientists are unsure about the exact nature of the prion, but it's very small and heat-resistant.
The vast majority of cases of vCJD have occurred in Great Britain, where more than 80 people have died from the disease. Most BSE cases have also occurred in Great Britain, where more than 175,000 head of cattle were diagnosed from late 1986 through mid-1999. At its peak in January 1993, almost 1,000 new cases were reported weekly. Today, only about 60 new cases are reported weekly. No cases of BSE or vCJD have ever been identified in the United States, but it's not because we're not looking.