{"id":485561,"date":"2026-05-15T06:33:25","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T06:33:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/485561\/"},"modified":"2026-05-15T06:33:25","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T06:33:25","slug":"5-early-signs-of-sma-for-parents-to-look-out-for-the-irish-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/485561\/","title":{"rendered":"5 early signs of SMA for parents to look out for \u2013 The Irish News"},"content":{"rendered":"

Two life-changing treatments have been given the green light for routine NHS use, offering renewed hope to hundreds of children living with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA).<\/p>\n

Nusinersen, an injectable drug and the first-ever disease-modifying therapy for SMA, and oral treatment risdiplam were previously only accessible through a special scheme while further evidence on their effectiveness was gathered.<\/p>\n

However, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has now officially approved both treatments for routine and widespread use across the NHS in England.<\/p>\n

\"\"(Alamy Stock Photo) <\/p>\n

Without medical intervention, symptoms of the most severe form of SMA (Type 1) can progress quickly, with life expectancy estimated at less than two years, according to Muscular Dystrophy UK<\/a>, but now NHS England said the therapies have now helped 73 children with the condition survive to aged five or older.<\/p>\n

\"‘The<\/a>\"7<\/a><\/p>\n

Many people first became aware of SMA after singer and former Little Mix member Jesy Nelson began speaking publicly about the condition at the beginning of the year, following the diagnosis of her twins, Ocean Jade and Story Monroe.<\/p>\n

However, despite this increased attention, awareness of the causes and symptoms of this rare disease remains limited. We spoke to Dr Charlotte Roy, life sciences policy and influencing manager at Muscular Dystrophy UK, who has explained exactly what SMA is and has highlighted five key early signs that parents should look out for.<\/p>\n

What is SMA?<\/b><\/p>\n

\"\"(Alamy Stock Photo) <\/p>\n

The NHS<\/a> defines SMA as a rare genetic condition that can cause muscle weakness.<\/p>\n

\u201cSMA is a genetic condition that affects the motor neurons which send electrical signals from the brain to the muscles to tell them to move,\u201d explains Roy.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs part of SMA, the motor neurons start to get damaged and break down, which means the message from the brain through to the muscles can\u2019t happen. As a result, the muscles will start to get weak and progressively waste away.\u201d<\/p>\n

This happens because in most cases, SMA is caused by a change in the SMN1 gene located on chromosome 5 (5q), according to Muscular Dystrophy UK\u2019s website<\/a>.<\/p>\n

There are several different types of SMA.<\/p>\n

\u201cSMA Type 1 is the most common and severe type, and the symptoms normally appear within the first six months,\u201d says Roy.<\/p>\n

Symptoms can vary and depend on how severe the condition is and how much it has progressed, but here are five common early signs of SMA to look out for in babies\u2026<\/p>\n

1. Profound muscle weakness<\/b><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the motor neurons break down, the signal from the brain to the muscle can\u2019t get through. And if the signal doesn\u2019t get through to the muscles, the muscles don\u2019t move,\u201d explains Roy.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis leads to low muscle tone and floppiness in babies with SMA because their muscles aren\u2019t as strong as they should be as they start to waste away.\u201d<\/p>\n

2. Difficulties with feeding and breathing<\/b><\/p>\n

\"\"(Alamy Stock Photo) <\/p>\n

\u201cMotor neurons control the signals for all muscles within the body, including the muscles that you need to use to breathe and swallow, so babies with SMA often experience difficulties breathing and swallowing,\u201d says Roy.<\/p>\n

This can become more obvious when they start move onto eating more solid foods.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf they struggle swallowing food this can potentially lead to choking,\u201d says Roy.<\/p>\n

3. Unable to sit up alone<\/b><\/p>\n

\"MotherMother helping baby sit up (Alamy Stock Photo) <\/p>\n

\u201cOne missed milestone to look out for is being able to sit up unsupported,\u201d says Roy. \u201cBabies with SMA are often not able to sit up unsupported because they\u2019ve got weak core muscles.\u201d<\/p>\n

4. Poor head control<\/b><\/p>\n

\u201cSimilarly, check to see if are unable to raise their head, because SMA can led to weakness in the neck muscles,\u201d says Roy.<\/p>\n

5. Recurring chest infections<\/b><\/p>\n

According to Muscular Dystrophy UK<\/a>, babies and children with SMA type 1 are at higher risk of respiratory issues and chest infections.<\/p>\n

\u201cBabies with SMA often get more chest infections, so that\u2019s another sign to look out for,\u201d says Roy.<\/p>\n

When to seek advice:<\/b><\/p>\n

\"\"(Alamy Stock Photo) <\/p>\n

\u201cIf you notice anything that you think isn\u2019t quite right, I would recommend going to talk to your GP about it,\u201d advises Roy. \u201cIt most likely won\u2019t be SMA, but it\u2019s important to get any concerns checked out just in case, because with SMA early diagnosis is key.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe GP will refer anything on to a neuromuscular specialist who can start the diagnosis process. Diagnosis usually involves genetic testing, because it\u2019s a genetic condition.\u201d<\/p>\n

Why is early diagnosis so important?<\/b><\/p>\n

\u201cOnce your motor neurons have died, you can\u2019t bring them back. Therefore, we want to protect those motor neurons as much as possible,\u201d says Roy. \u201cEarly diagnosis means earlier treatment and better outcomes for the babies.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Two life-changing treatments have been given the green light for routine NHS use, offering renewed hope to hundreds…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":485562,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[78],"tags":[18,135,7114,19,17,212146,147355,212147,212148,53567,1294],"class_list":{"0":"post-485561","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-health","8":"tag-eire","9":"tag-health","10":"tag-health-lifestyle","11":"tag-ie","12":"tag-ireland","13":"tag-muscular-dystrophy-uk","14":"tag-sma","15":"tag-sma-signs","16":"tag-sma-type-1","17":"tag-spinal-muscular-atrophy","18":"tag-uk"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/116577200982668696","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485561","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=485561"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485561\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/485562"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=485561"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=485561"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=485561"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}