Diagnostic approach in a patient with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease

Prion diseases are an important cause of rapidly progressive dementias. Among them, the most common is sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). It is a rare and incurable disease, with rapid progression to death. To describe the diagnostic approach of a patient with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. The diagnosis is established through the clinical picture associated with characteristic changes in the brain magnetic resonance imaging, the electroencephalogram, and analysis of specific changes in the cerebrospinal fluid. The present report describes the case of a 53-year-old patient in the city of Fortaleza-CE. The diagnosis was made based on the clinical condition and through diagnostic tests, including 14-3-3 protein and RT QUIC analysis. Differential diagnosis was performed with other rapidly progressive causes, such as infectious and immune-mediated diseases. The diagnosis of probable sporadic CJD was established.