Reducing the risk of transmission of Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (CJD) from surgical instruments used for interventional procedures on high-risk tissues

This guidance is for high-risk tissues

This guidance is for interventional procedures on tissues considered at high risk of transmitting Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (CJD). These procedures on high-risk tissues are intradural surgery on the brain (including the pituitary gland) and spinal cord, neuroendoscopy, and surgery on the retina or optic nerve (see appendix D for a complete list).

Note that the abbreviation 'CJD' is used for both sporadic and variant CJD (vCJD), including surgically transmitted CJD (stCJD), unless otherwise specified.

The recommendations do not apply to any interventional procedures done on patients already known to have or thought to be at increased risk of CJD as previously defined by the Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens' Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies subgroup. For these patients and patients in whom the risk of CJD cannot be ascertained by questioning them, or when a diagnosis of CJD cannot be excluded, the Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens' guidance on transmissible spongiform encephalopathy agents: safe working and the prevention of infection must be followed.