The Health Protection Agency of the UK has released its summary results of the second national survey of abnormal prion prevalence in archived appendix specimens. The Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens (ACDP) TSE Risk Assessment Subgroup published a comment on the these results in a position paper.
The position paper concludes amongst other things that (highlighting by USP):
- While fundamental research into prion diseases continues, it is essential to ensure that consistent, long-term surveillance of the population continues. This should include development of methods to characterise the disease and if appropriate differentiate between strains.
- Despite the welcome fall in vCJD diagnoses, the indication of relatively widespread, albeit “silent”, vCJD infection necessitates continued attention to the risks of secondary, person-to-person transmission, and for applied research to support the development and implementation of risk management strategies.
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