Man dies from rare brain disease after eating squirrel brains
- 6 years ago
ROCHESTER, NEW YORK — A hunter in New York died from a rare mad cow-like disease he may have contracted from eating squirrel brains.
Miami Herald reports that the 61-year-old man was taken to a hospital in Rochester, New York after suffering from impaired walking and thinking.
An MRI revealed that the man's brain looked similar to those with variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, which is caused by infectious proteins called prions and tied to the consumption of contaminated beef.
Prion build-up in the cells rapidly deteriorates the brain, causing it to shrink, and tiny holes to appear in the tissues — making it look like a sponge.
The disease is fatal, with patients typically dying within a year of showing symptoms.
The Rochester patient met a similar fate, and died five months after being diagnosed with the infection in 2015.
Doctors found out from his family that the man liked to hunt, and believe he may have contracted Creutzfeldt-Jakob from eating squirrels' brains.
Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease is extremely rare. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are only four confirmed cases in the U.S.
Miami Herald reports that the 61-year-old man was taken to a hospital in Rochester, New York after suffering from impaired walking and thinking.
An MRI revealed that the man's brain looked similar to those with variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, which is caused by infectious proteins called prions and tied to the consumption of contaminated beef.
Prion build-up in the cells rapidly deteriorates the brain, causing it to shrink, and tiny holes to appear in the tissues — making it look like a sponge.
The disease is fatal, with patients typically dying within a year of showing symptoms.
The Rochester patient met a similar fate, and died five months after being diagnosed with the infection in 2015.
Doctors found out from his family that the man liked to hunt, and believe he may have contracted Creutzfeldt-Jakob from eating squirrels' brains.
Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease is extremely rare. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are only four confirmed cases in the U.S.