Progressive fatal dementia (Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease) in a patient who received homograft tissue for tympanic membrane closure

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Abstract
We report the case history of a 54-year-old man who developed a fatal neurological disorder 4 years after a succesful tympanoplasty with homograft pericardium. The final diagnosis of this case was Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. This infectious spongiform encephalopathy is probably caused by a slow virus that can be transmitted by transplantation materials. The possible accidental transmission of Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease by the use of homograft materials in otologic surgery is discussed.