brain and spinal cord, known to have the highest infectivity) in food, feed, or other 

 products; and destroying animals showing signs of BSE and other animals at high risk 

 of developing the disease. As a result of these actions, most notably the imposition 

 of feed bans, the rate of newly reported cases of BSE in the United Kingdom has 

 greatly decreased. 



In March 1996, the United Kingdom's Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory 

 Committee (SEAC) announced the identification of 10 cases of variant Creuzfeldt- 

 Jakob disease (vCJD) in people. These cases had a characteristic clinical and 

 pathological phenotype that differed fi"om other routinely diagnosed cases of classic 

 (sporadic) CJD. SEAC concluded that the most likely explanation at that time was 

 that the cases were linked to exposure to BSE before the introduction of controls on 

 risky material from cattle. Current evidence suggests that vCJD is a new condition, 

 both clinically and pathologically. The epidemiologic evidence is consistent with BSE, 

 and the causal agent and recent laboratory evidence provide strong support for the 

 hypothesis of a causal link between BSE and vCJD. 



Identifying Affected Animals — Since 1989, APHIS has prohibited the import of 

 ruminants and most ruminant products from countries that have identified BSE 

 in native cattle or that are at risk for BSE. An ongoing, comprehensive interagency 

 surveillance program for BSE has been in place since 1990. APHIS also supports 

 the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) regulation prohibiting the use of most 

 mammalian proteins in ruminant feed. Currently, USDA allows the importation of 

 certain commodities under permit or by regulation from minimal BSE-risk countries. 

 BSE surveillance efforts are currently increasing in the United States, and accredited 

 veterinarians with proper training can anticipate greater involvement in this area. 



BSE is a reportable disease. Any suspicious cases should be reported to the APHIS- 

 VS Area Office or the State animal health official as a suspected foreign animal 

 disease (FAD). 



Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) 



CWD is a TSE of North American deer and elk. First recognized as a clinical 

 "wasting" syndrome in 1967 in mule deer in a wildlife research facility in northern 

 Colorado, it was identified as a TSE in 1978. CWD is typified by chronic weight loss 

 leading to death. There is no known relationship between CWD and any other TSEs 

 of animals or people. 



In the mid-1980s, CWD was first detected in free-ranging deer and elk in contiguous 

 portions of northeastern Colorado and southeastern Wyoming. In May 2001, CWD 

 also was found in free-ranging deer in the southwestern corner of Nebraska (adjacent 

 to Colorado and Wyoming). The limited area of northern Colorado, southern 

 Wyoming, and western Nebraska in which free- ranging deer and elk positive for 



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