AN inquest heard how a scaffolder died of the brain disease CJD.

The inquest, in Middlesbrough, was told that the chances of catching the disease were a million to one.

However, doctors said Malcolm Irving died of the natural form of Creutz-feldt-Jacob Disease and not the new variant linked with eating contaminated beef.

Despite years of research, the causes of sporadic CJD are unknown and it is incurable.

Mr Irving's widow, Sheila, told the inquest the 58-year-old had been in good health when he developed an ear infection.

"He had to go to the North Riding Infirmary for a scan. In the meantime, he started doing things which was not him. He was forgetting things and putting things in the wrong place," she said.

His illness progressed to making involuntary jerking movements with his arms and legs. He was admitted to hospital, first to Middlesbrough's James Cook University Hospital, then moved to Middlesbrough General Hospital.

Mr Irving was later moved to the Teesside Hospice where he died some time later.

Neurologist Dr Tilo Wolf told assistant deputy Teesside Coroner Anthony Eastwood Mr Irving's deterioration and confusion was rapid.

He said: "Research is going on. There are treatments which can prolong life of these patients, but there is no treatment for this condition."

His diagnosis was confirmed by Professor James Ironside, a leading British authority, based at the CJD Surveillance Unit at Edinburgh.

Pathologist Dr David Scoones said the disease entailed a change in the structure of the brain when an abnormal protein was produced which damaged brain cells and inhibited the function of the brain.

Mr Irving, of Gilford Road, Normanby, near Middlesbrough, died of bronchial pneumonia as a result of immobilisation through sporadic CJD.

Recording a verdict of death from natural causes, Mr Eastwood said: "It is a disease which affects one in a million people."

He extended his condolences to Mr Irving's family.