TABLE 1.
Incidents of Patient Exposure to Instruments Potentially Contaminated with Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Reported by US Hospitals
| Hospital | Age, sex | Death year | Procedure type/reason for procedure | Time from procedure to diagnosis | Identification of neurosurgery set | Notification decision |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 69, F | 1998 | Shunt for hydrocephalus | 5 months | Not identified (1 of 4 sets) | Unknown |
| B | 59, F | 1998 | Vasculitis or encephalitisa | 2 days | Not identified (1 of 12 sets) | Unknown |
| C | 70, F | 1998 | Cerebral vasculitisa | 1 week | Not identified (1 of 5 sets) | Patients not notified |
| D | 60s, M | 2000 | Uncontrollable seizures | 3 months | Identified | Patients notified |
| E | 66, F | 2001 | Brain biopsy to rule out vasculitisa | 3 weeks | Identified | Patients notified |
| F | 80, M | 2001 | Cataract surgery | 2 months | Not identified | Patients not notified |
| G | 43, M | 2002 | Chiari I decompression | 1 year | Not identified | Patients notified |
| H | 46, F | 2004 | Brain biopsy for undiagnosed encephalitisa | 1 day | Identified | Patient to be notified within 2 years |
| I | 67, F | 2004 | Cataract surgery | 3 months | Not identified (1 of 8 sets) | Patients not notified |
| J | 48, F | 2004 | Shunt for hydrocephalus | 5 months | Not identified (1 of 2 sets) | First 16 patients notified |
| K | Unknown | 2004 | Brain biopsy to rule out vasculitisa | <2 weeks | Identified (1 of 6 sets) | Patients notified |
| L | 58, F | 2004 | Brain biopsy for suspected encephalitisa | 5 days | Not identified (1 of 9 or 10 sets) | Patients notified |
| M | 68, M | 2005 | Evacuation of subdural hematoma, bilateral frontal-parietal burr holes | 7 months | Not identified (1 of 4 sets) | Patients notified |
| N | 61, M | 2007 | Frontal lobe meningioma | 3 months | Not identified (1 of 12 sets) | Patients not notified |
| O | 49, F | Unknown | Brain biopsya | Unknown | Identified (only 1 set) | Patients notified |
| P | 78, M | 2011 | Shunt for hydrocephalus | 8 months | Not identified (1 of 2 sets) | Patients notified |
| Q | 52, F | 2012 | Brain biopsya | 2 days | Identified | Patients notified |
| R | 68, M | 2012 | Exploratory craniotomya | 12 days | Identified (1 of 5 sets) | Patients notified |
| S | 74, M | 2012 | Evacuation of hematoma | 4 months, 10 days | Identified (1 of 2 sets) | Patient notified |
a
Intracranial procedures most likely performed as part of the diagnostic assessment of the patients, indicating absence of a definitive diagnosis.