Article: Form of Fatal Insomnia Discovered

KATHARINE WEBSTER, Associated Press Writer
AP Online
05-26-1999
Form of Fatal Insomnia Discovered

Researchers have discovered a brain-wasting disease that begins with severe insomnia and ends in hallucinations and death.

The disease, sporadic fatal insomnia, is caused by the same type of deformed proteins, known as prions, that cause mad cow disease and its human variant, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, according to two studies.

There is no known treatment or cure. It is not clear what causes the disease, but scientists know it is not inherited. And unlike one type of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, it is not believed to come from infected meat.

Instead, scientists suspect it is caused by a ...

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