Sensory disturbances in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

BACKGROUND: Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease characterized by rapidly progressive dementia, motor impairments, and psychiatric symptoms. Sensory disturbances were occasionally reported as well. The study aims to describe the sensory symptoms of the disease. METHODS: The CJD Israeli National Database was screened for patients who presented sensory symptoms throughout the disease course. Symptoms, characteristics, and distribution were reviewed and the demographic and clinical data (sex, etiologies of the disease, age of onset, disease duration, neurological exam finding, tau protein level, EEG and MRI findings) were compared with the demographics and clinical data of CJD without sensory symptoms. Then, the patients with sensory symptoms were divided into patients with symptom distribution consistent with peripheral nervous system (PNS) involvement and central nervous system (CNS) involvement. The demographics and clinical data of the 2 groups were compared. RESULTS: Eighty-four CJD patients with sensory symptoms and 645 CJD patients without sensory symptoms were included in the study. Sensory symptoms were more common in genetic E200K CJD patients (14.6% vs. 5.6% respectively, p = 0.0005) (chi-squared test). Numbness and neuropathic pain were the most common symptoms and distribution of symptoms of "stocking gloves" with decreased deep tendon reflexes suggesting peripheral neuropathy in 44% of the patients. In these patients, the classical EEG findings of Periodic Sharp Wave Complexes were less often found (58% vs. 22%, p = 0.02) (chi-squared test). CONCLUSIONS: Sensory symptoms are more common in E200K patients and often follow peripheral neuropathy distribution that suggests PNS involvement.

Is There Horizontal Transmission of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease?

BACKGROUND: Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (s-CJD) is a rare, fatal neurodegenerative disorder. Familial cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (f-CJD) due to mutations in the PRNP gene are even rarer around the world; however, in Israel there is a focus of f-CJD patients carrying the E200K mutation. As the number of CJD E200K carriers in Israel is high and increasing, transmission of CJD to normal people was suspected. If such transmission occurs, the incidence of s-CJD would be expected to increase as well, resulting in changes of the ratio of familial/sporadic cases. METHODS: Using data from the National CJD Registry and official statistics on the Israeli population, we studied incidence rates of f-CJD and s-CJD for the period from 1985 to 2018 applying the Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) statistical packet developed in the US National Cancer Institute. RESULTS: In total, 621 CJD patients (405 f-CJD and 216 s-CJD) cases are included in the registry. In the cohort of f-CJD patients, the mean age-adjusted annual incidence rate over the abovementioned period was 1.88 ± 0.09 (95% CI: 1.7-2.08) per 1,000,000. In the cohort of s-CJD patients, the mean age-adjusted incidence rate over the same period was 0.93 ± 0.06 (95% CI: 0.81-1.06) per 1,000,000 people. No significant time trends were found over the observation period in either s-CJD or f-CJD. The ratio f-CJD/s-CJD decreases over the observation period from 2.2 to 1.80. CONCLUSION: Israel has a high predominance of f-CJD compared to s-CJD. The mean incidence rate of s-CJD in Israel is similar to most countries. Between 1985 and 2018, the annual age-adjusted incidence rates for both forms of CJD remained stable. Thus, there is no evidence that CJD is transmitted from affected individuals to others.

Genetic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in Turkish Jews-demographic and clinical features.

BACKGROUND: The largest cluster of genetic Creutzfeldt- Jakob Disease (CJD) exists in Libyan Jews carrying the E200K mutation in the PRNP gene. However, there is another cluster of genetic CJD with E200K mutation in families of Turkish-Jewish origin. AIMS: In this retrospective study, we aim to describe the demographic and clinical features of this population of patients. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The Israeli National CJD database was searched for demographic, clinical, imaging, and laboratory data of genetic CJD patients of Libyan and Turkish ancestry with the E200K mutation. The data of Libyan and Turkish patients were compared with notice similar or different demographic or clinical courses. RESULTS: Four hundred and twenty-three patients with CJD of Libyan (L) ancestry and 27 patients with CJD of Turkish (T) ancestry were identified. There were no significant differences in demographic and clinical data between the two populations (age of onset: T = 62 ± 8.8, L = 60 ± 9.7; age of death: T = 63 ± 8.6, L = 61 ± 9.7; and disease duration: T = 7.8 ± 8.4 months, L = 9.6 ± 13.6 months). Rapidly progressive dementia was the most common presentation in both groups, followed by pure cerebellar onset. The levels of tau protein in CSF did not differ between groups (T = 1290 ± 397.6 pg/ml, L = 1276 ± 594.2 pg/ml). MRI and EEG showed classical CJD features in most patients in both groups. DISCUSSION: The E200K mutation is the most common mutation among gCJD patients and was reported in different ethnical populations, suggesting several independent haplotypes of the mutation. The Turkish-Jew cluster, first described in this study, shares similar demographic and clinical features with the bigger cluster of Libyan-Jews CJD patients. CONCLUSION: E200K gCJD patients of Turkish ancestry share similar demographic and clinical features to patients of Libyan descent, suggesting a common origin of both populations.

Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of patients with late-onset Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

BACKGROUND: Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease (CJD) is a fatal neuro-degenerative disease, characterized by rapid and intense deterioration, mainly cognitive, leading to death. The typical onset of the disease is around the age of 67. PURPOSE: To characterize the demographic and clinical features of the population of CJD patients with late-onset disease. METHODS: In this retrospective study, the Israeli national database of prion diseases was screened for CJD patients with disease age of onset > 80 years between 1960 and 2016. Patient's demographic and clinical data were collected including sex, type of disease (sporadic/ genetic), clinical presentation, lab results including tau protein level, imaging, and EEG characteristics. Then, the clinical and demographic data of patients with late onset (> 80 years) (L) and patients with usual age of onset (< 80 years) (U) were compared. RESULTS: The study included 728 patients, 23 patients (3.3%) with late-onset disease (82.2.4±4 years, range 80-88) and 705 with usual disease onset (61.31 ± 9.47 years, range 34-80). Sporadic CJD was more common in the late-onset group (18/23 patients (78.2%) (L) vs. 256/705 patients (36.3%) (U)) (p = 0.0001, chi-square test). Classical EEG finding of periodic sharp wave activity were seen more often in the late-onset patients (55% (L) vs. 32.5% (U)) (p = 0.05, chi-square test). The rest of the demographic and clinical features were similar in both groups. CONCLUSION: Late- and usual-onset diseases are similar in most of demographic and clinical features suggesting a common disease type with normal distribution of age of onset.

Spatial distribution of abnormal EEG activity in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

OBJECTIVES: Electroencephalogram (EEG) pattern in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is characterized by diffuse abnormal activity, although lateralization to one hemisphere has been described in the first stages of the disease. This study aimed to determine whether abnormal EEG activity predominantly occurs in anterior versus posterior brain regions. METHODS: As part of a prospective study, the demographics, clinical features and MRI findings of genetic E200K CJD patients were collected. EEG was performed and the recordings reviewed for the typical periodic sharp wave complex (PSWC) and non-specific slow activity. Data were analyzed using the qEEG tool, and the activity in anterior and posterior regions of the brain compared. RESULTS: Eleven genetic E200K CJD patients were included in the study (67% women). The average age was 59.1 ±â€¯8.4 SD years and the average disease duration was 2.4 ±â€¯2.1 months. EEG showed the classic PSWC pattern in 5/11 (45%) of the patients, and slow activity was seen in 9/11 (82%). EEG was normal in 2 patients. PSWC activity was diffuse in 2/5 patients and unilateral in 3/5 patients; slow activity was diffuse in 9 patients. Quantitative analysis of PSWC and slow activity showed no significant difference between anterior and posterior distribution. CONCLUSION: The abnormal EEG activity in CJD is diffuse with no clear spatial predominance in anterior or posterior brain regions.

Familial Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease homozygous to the E200K mutation: clinical characteristics and disease course.

OBJECTIVE: To characterize the demographic, clinical features and disease course of familial Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (fCJD) patients homozygous to the E200K mutation. METHODS: The Israeli National CJD Database was screened for patients homozygous to the E200K mutation. Patients' demographic data, clinical presentation and neurological findings, tau protein levels in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and EEG, were assessed. RESULTS: Ten homozygous E200K patients were identified (80% males). Average age of onset was 47.5 ± 6.1 years (range 40-56) and the average age of death was 49.3 ± 7. 7 years (range 42-63) with average disease duration of 27.7 ± 9.7 months (range 2-97). Initial clinical presentation included behavioral change in 4/10 patients, cognitive decline in 3/10 patients and focal neurological deficits in 2/10 patients. Throughout the disease course, the clinical signs in descending order of prevalence included cerebellar (70%), brainstem (60%), extrapyramidal (50%), pyramidal (50%), frontal lobe signs (30%), and disturbances of ocular motility (30%) Compared to the 228 heterozygous E200K fCJD patients, the 10 homozygous patients were significantly younger at disease onset (47.5 vs 59.7 years, p < 0.001), had a longer disease duration (27.7 vs 8.5 months, p < 0.001) and presented more frequently with behavioral changes as initial manifestation (4/10 vs. 34/228, p = 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Homozygous E200K fCJD patients are characterized by a relatively younger age of onset and longer disease duration. Behavioral changes as a presenting symptom were more common in homozygous patients and cerebellar dysfunction was the most common neurological manifestation throughout the disease course.

Disease duration in E200K familial Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease is correlated with clinical, radiological, and laboratory variables.

Previous studies have suggested that disease duration in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) may be related to the radiological findings or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) tau levels; however, it is not yet established whether clinical, radiological, and laboratory findings at diagnosis can predict survival or have a prognostic value. The aim of this study was to examine whether the disease duration is correlated with clinical, radiological, and laboratory variables. The study population consisted of consecutive familial CJD (fCJD) patients that were assessed within 1 week from the diagnosis including the CJD neurological scale (CJD-NS), Minimental Status Examination, Frontal Assessment Battery, NIH Stroke Scale, and the expanded disability status scale. In addition, a single MRI study was done and measurements of the extent of the cortical and subcortical involvement were performed. CSF was examined as part of the workout, and tau levels were determined. Sixty-nine fCJD patients were included in the study (43 males, mean age 59.3 ± 8.4, range 44-79 years). The mean disease duration was 7.3 ± 6.9 months (median 5.6 months, range 2-20 months). A significant correlation was found between the disease duration and the CJD-NS, the disease burden as reflected by the degree of cortical involvement by DWI, and the CSF tau levels. The findings of the current study reveal that several findings at disease onset including the disease severity, the cortical changes, and the tau levels are each individually correlated with disease duration and can be used by the clinician as a tool to predict the disease course and prognosis.

CSF tau correlates with the degree of cortical involvement in E200K familial Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) tau was found to correlate with disease severity and cognitive status in E200K familial Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (fCJD) patients. The objective of the present study was to test whether tau levels in the CSF also correlate with the disease burden as reflected by the degree of cortical involvement in DWI MRI. Forty-four consecutive E200K fCJD patients (25 males, mean age 58.6±7.5, range 48-75 years) were recruited to the study and had a CSF tau examination as well as measurements of the extent of the cortical involvement in the DWI axial MRI. Correlation was tested using Pearson test. A significant correlation (r=0.617 p<0.0001) was found between CSF tau levels and the extent of cortical involvement. This correlation between tau levels and the disease burden reinforce the notion that tau can be used as a biomarker reflecting the extent of disease in patients with E200K fCJD.

Clinical radiological correlation in E200K familial Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

The use of diffusion MRI improved the accuracy of diagnosis in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) and expanded our knowledge of the changes occurring in the brain during the disease. The aim of this study was to test whether in patients with E200K familial CJD (fCJD) the clinical severity correlates with the disease burden as reflected by the extent of cortical involvement in DWI MRI. Consecutive fCJD patients were examined by a neurologist who performed several tests including the CJD neurological scale (CJD-NS), MiniMental status examination (MMSE), Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB), NIH Stroke Scale (NIHSS), and the expanded disability status scale (EDSS). A simultaneously acquired MRI was analyzed by measuring the extent of cortical involvement in the DWI axial sequence. Correlations were tested for using Pearson test. Fifty-two fCJD patients (35 males, mean age 59.4 ± 5.7 years) were recruited to the study. Significant negative correlation was found between the extent of cortical involvement and the cognitive performance of the patients as reflected by their MMSE and FAB scores. In addition, a significant positive correlation was found between the MRI and the clinical disease severity scales CJD-NS and EDSS. The correlation between clinical scales of severity and cognitive dysfunction and the disease burden confirms the reliability of the CJD-NS scale. Further studies are warranted to examine whether MRI may serve not only for diagnosis but also as a biomarker for follow-up of disease progression and the efficacy of potential treatments.

Multiplex families with epilepsy: Success of clinical and molecular genetic characterization.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the clinical syndromes and inheritance patterns of multiplex families with epilepsy toward the ultimate aim of uncovering the underlying molecular genetic basis. METHODS: Following the referral of families with 2 or more relatives with epilepsy, individuals were classified into epilepsy syndromes. Families were classified into syndromes where at least 2 family members had a specific diagnosis. Pedigrees were analyzed and molecular genetic studies were performed as appropriate. RESULTS: A total of 211 families were ascertained over an 11-year period in Israel. A total of 169 were classified into broad familial epilepsy syndrome groups: 61 generalized, 22 focal, 24 febrile seizure syndromes, 33 special syndromes, and 29 mixed. A total of 42 families remained unclassified. Pathogenic variants were identified in 49/211 families (23%). The majority were found in established epilepsy genes (e.g., SCN1A, KCNQ2, CSTB), but in 11 families, this cohort contributed to the initial discovery (e.g., KCNT1, PCDH19, TBC1D24). We expand the phenotypic spectrum of established epilepsy genes by reporting a familial LAMC3 homozygous variant, where the predominant phenotype was epilepsy with myoclonic-atonic seizures, and a pathogenic SCN1A variant in a family where in 5 siblings the phenotype was broadly consistent with Dravet syndrome, a disorder that usually occurs sporadically. CONCLUSION: A total of 80% of families were successfully classified, with pathogenic variants identified in 23%. The successful characterization of familial electroclinical and inheritance patterns has highlighted the value of studying multiplex families and their contribution towards uncovering the genetic basis of the epilepsies.

Characterization of sleep disorders in patients with E200K familial Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

The largest cluster of E200K familial Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (fCJD) which occurs is in Jews of Libyan origin in Israel. Insomnia is a very common early complaint in those patients and may even be the presenting symptom. The aim of this study was to assess and characterize sleep pathology in E200K fCJD patients. To do so, sleep studies of 10 consecutive fCJD patients were compared with those of 39 age and gender-matched controls. All patients presented pathological sleep characterized by fragmentation of sleep, loss of sleep spindles and reduced REM sleep amount. Respiration was characterized by irregular rhythm, periodic breathing, apneas and hypopneas, either central or obstructive. EMG recordings revealed repeated movements in sleep, with loss of REM atonia. Comparing to controls, a significant decrease of total sleep time, sleep efficacy and slow-wave sleep as well as a significant increase in the number of awakenings, apnea-hypopnea index and mixed and central apneas were evident in CJD patients. Comparison of two sequential sleep studies in one patient revealed a 40 % reduction of the total sleep time, a 40 % reduction in sleep efficacy and a 40-fold increase of the number of arousals in the second study. A significant correlation was found between the disease severity, as reflected by the CJD Neurological Scale and Periodic leg movement index. These definite and characteristic sleep pathologies in patients with fCJD associated with the E200K mutation may serve as a new diagnostic tool in the disease.

Familial Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease with the E200K mutation: longitudinal neuroimaging from asymptomatic to symptomatic CJD.

Familial Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (fCJD) in Jews of Libyan ancestry is caused by an E200K mutation in the PRNP gene. While carriers are born with this mutation, they usually remain asymptomatic until middle age. Early detection of conversion is crucial for understanding and eventually for the treatment of the disease. The aim of this study was to report longitudinal MRI data in E200K individuals who eventually converted from healthy mutation carriers to clinically symptomatic CJD. As a part of a prospective study, asymptomatic E200K mutation carriers were scanned annually until their conversion to symptomatic disease. Standardized diffusion and anatomical MR sequences were performed before and after clinical conversion in the subjects and those were compared to 15 non-carrier siblings ("healthy controls"). Blinded radiological readings and region of interest analyses were performed. Radiological readings of individual cases failed to detect characteristic changes in the scans taken before the conversion. Region of interest analysis of diffusion changes in pre-symptomatic stage was inconclusive; however, ADC reduction was found in early and late stages of the disease. Computerized volumetric analysis revealed monotonic volume reductions in thalamus, putamen and caudate following conversion, and the lateral ventricles showed dilatation of up to 62 % after clinical conversion. Although the clinical manifestations at disease onset are variable, the diffusion abnormalities and/or volume changes in the thalamus and basal ganglia during conversion may indicate early involvement of the thalamostriatal neuronal circuit.

Snord 3A: a molecular marker and modulator of prion disease progression.

Since preventive treatments for prion disease require early identification of subjects at risk, we searched for surrogate peripheral markers characterizing the asymptomatic phases of such conditions. To this effect, we subjected blood mRNA from E200K PrP CJD patients and corresponding family members to global arrays and found that the expression of Snord3A, a non-coding RNA transcript, was elevated several times in CJD patients as compared to controls, while asymptomatic carriers presented intermediate Snord3A levels. In the brains of TgMHu2ME199K mice, a mouse model mimicking for E200K CJD, Snord 3A levels were elevated in an age and disease severity dependent manner, as was the case for brains of these mice in which disease was exacerbated by copper administration. Snord3A expression was also elevated in scrapie infected mice, but not in PrP(0/0) mice, indicating that while the expression levels of this transcript may reflect diverse prion etiologies, they are not related to the loss of PrP(C)'s function. Elevation of Snord3A was consistent with the activation of ATF6, representing one of the arms of the unfolded protein response system. Indeed, SnoRNAs were associated with reduced resistance to oxidative stress, and with ER stress in general, factors playing a significant role in this and other neurodegenerative conditions. We hypothesize that in addition to its function as a disease marker, Snord3A may play an important role in the mechanism of prion disease manifestation and progression.

Missense mutations in the sodium-gated potassium channel gene KCNT1 cause severe autosomal dominant nocturnal frontal lobe epilepsy.

We performed genomic mapping of a family with autosomal dominant nocturnal frontal lobe epilepsy (ADNFLE) and intellectual and psychiatric problems, identifying a disease-associated region on chromosome 9q34.3. Whole-exome sequencing identified a mutation in KCNT1, encoding a sodium-gated potassium channel subunit. KCNT1 mutations were identified in two additional families and a sporadic case with severe ADNFLE and psychiatric features. These findings implicate the sodium-gated potassium channel complex in ADNFLE and, more broadly, in the pathogenesis of focal epilepsies.

Tau and 14-3-3 of genetic and sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease patients in Israel.

One of the largest clusters of genetic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (gCJD) is found among Jews of Libyan origin in Israel and is linked to the E200K mutation in PRNP (gCJDE200K). The aim of this study was to compare the levels of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers, Tau and 14-3-3 proteins, between gCJDE200K patients, sporadic CJD (sCJD) patients and non-CJD controls in Israel between the years 1996-2006. The levels of Tau and 14-3-3 proteins in CSF were measured by ELISA and immunoblotting, respectively. CSF Tau levels were similar in gCJDE200K and sCJD, both were significantly higher than in controls [1,107 ± 470 pg/ml [33/46 (72%)] of the cases >1,000 pg/ml, 1,280 ± 580 pg/ml [25/30 (83.3%)], and 354 ± 338 pg/ml [17/243 (6.9%)], respectively, p < 0.001]. 14-3-3 was detected in CSF of 41/53 (77%) of each gCJDE200K and sCJD patients tested, but only in 70/417 (16.8%) of controls (p < 0.001). An inverse correlation was found between disease duration and Tau levels in both gCJDE200K and sCJD (r = -0.464 and r = -0.284). No difference was found in Tau or 14-3-3 between the various codon 129 genotypes. We conclude that CSF biomarkers, Tau and 14-3-3, may be used in the diagnosis in both patients' populations, presenting a similar sensitivity yet Tau assay having higher specificity.

Multiple sclerosis: geoepidemiology, genetics and the environment.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic immune-mediated demyelinating disease of the central nervous system characterized by relapses and remissions. The risk of acquiring this complex disease is associated with exposure to environmental factors in genetically susceptible individuals. The epidemiology of MS has been extensively studied. We review the geographic epidemiology of the disease, the influence of immigration, age at immigration, clustering and epidemics. Various presumptive risk factors are discussed such as ultraviolet radiation, vitamin D, Epstein-Barr virus and infectious mononucleosis, other infectious agents and non-infectious factors. Two different hypotheses, the hygiene hypothesis and the prevalence hypothesis, were proposed to explain these environmental risk factors for MS. The epidemiological data, combined with pathological and immunological data, may contribute to the debate whether MS is an autoimmune disease, a latent or persistent viral disease, or a neurodegenerative disease.

Thalamo-striatal diffusion reductions precede disease onset in prion mutation carriers.

Human prion diseases present substantial scientific and public health challenges. They are unique in being sporadic, infectious and inherited, and their pathogen is distinct from all other pathogens in lacking nucleic acids. Despite progress in understanding the molecular structure of prions, their initial cerebral pathophysiology and the loci of cerebral injury are poorly understood. As part of a large prospective study, we analysed early diffusion MRI scans of 14 patients with the E200K genetic form of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, 20 healthy carriers of this mutation that causes the disease and 20 controls without the mutation from the same families. Cerebral diffusion was quantified by the Apparent Diffusion Coefficient, and analysed by voxel-wise statistical parametric mapping technique. Compared to the mutation-negative controls, diffusion was significantly reduced in a thalamic-striatal network, comprising the putamen and mediodorsal, ventrolateral and pulvinar thalamic nuclei, in both the patients and the healthy mutation carriers. With disease onset, these diffusion reductions intensified, but did not spread to other areas. The caudate nucleus was reduced only after symptomatic onset. These findings indicate that cerebral diffusion reductions can be detected early in the course of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, and years before symptomatic onset in mutation carriers, in a distinct subcortical network. We suggest that this network is centrally involved in the pathogenesis of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, and its anatomical connections are sufficient to account for the common symptoms of this disease. Further, we suggest that the abnormalities in healthy mutation-carrying subjects may reflect the accumulation of abnormal prion protein and/or associated vacuolation at this time, temporally close to disease onset.

The imaging appearance of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease caused by the E200K mutation.

The E200K mutation on chromosome 20 can cause familial Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). Patients with this mutation are clinically similar to those with sporadic CJD, but their imaging features are not well documented. We report here the quantitative and qualitative evaluation of the magnetic resonance (MR) imaging characteristics of this unique group of patients using three-dimensional spoiled gradient recalled (SPGR) echo images, diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) with apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) measurements, MR spectroscopy and a fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) sequence. The SPGR and ADC data were analyzed with SPM99. ANCOVA and regression models were used for a region-of-interest (ROI) analysis of ADC and metabolic ratios. CJD patients had a decreased fraction of gray matter and an increased fraction of cerebrospinal fluid (P=.001) in the cortex and cerebellum and increased ADC values in the cortex (P<.001). Focal decreases of ADC were found in the putamen via ROI analysis (548+/-83 vs. 709+/-9 microm(2)/s, P=.02). N-acetyl aspartate (NAA) was generally reduced, with the NAA/Cho ratio lowest in the cingulate gyrus. Qualitative assessment revealed hyperintensities on FLAIR, DWI or both in the putamen (three out of four patients), caudate (three out of four patients) and thalamus. These results provide a framework for future study of patients with genetically defined familial CJD.

Multiple sclerosis frequency in Israel's diverse populations.

BACKGROUND: Israel has served for almost half a century as a site for epidemiologic studies of multiple sclerosis (MS). Its small geographic size, well-equipped, accessible, and subsidized health facilities, trained physicians, detailed census data, and a National MS Register, maintained since 1960, offer advantages for accurate determinations of MS frequency in its diverse populations. METHOD: The authors calculated age-specific prevalence of MS in Israeli-born Jewish inhabitants, immigrant Jews from Europe/America and from North Africa/Asia, Israeli-born Christian and Moslem Arabs, Druze, and Bedouins. RESULTS: Prevalence rate of MS per 10(5) population on June 30, 2000, for each of these groups in the order listed was 61.6, 53.7, and 27.9 for the Jewish groups and 35.3, 14.7, 10.9, and 17.3 for the non-Jewish groups. Three tiers in MS prevalence were apparent. The highest rates were in Israeli-born Jews and in Jewish immigrants from Europe/America (significantly higher in the former than the latter). Jewish immigrants from African/Asian countries and Christian Arabs had intermediate MS rates (significantly lower than in the first two groups but not significantly different from each other). Moslem Arabs, Druze, and Bedouins had the lowest rates of MS (significantly lower than in the intermediate group but not significantly different from each other). CONCLUSION: Diverse ethnic groups living in the same geographic area may have significantly different frequencies of MS.