Gratitude and support from family and healthcare staff can help people with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) feel more positive, stay motivated, and plan their lives better, a study found. Programs that focus on gratitude could help patients improve their mental health and help them cope with their disease more…
Evrysdi (risdiplam) effectively improved motor function in adults with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) type 2 or type 3, particularly skills like hand strength and function, a small study in France shows. Most patients also reported gains in bulbar functions, that is, speaking, chewing, and swallowing, and eased breath…
Treatment with the approved gene therapy Zolgensma was found to ease breathing difficulties in children with spinal muscle atrophy (SMA), reducing hospitalizations due to respiratory issues by than 25%, according to a real-world study in Israel. Daily ventilation time — the period when some children used mechanical devices to…
Researchers reported a unique mutation that supported an 8-year-old girl’s diagnosis of spinal muscle atrophy with lower extremity predominance (SMA-LED). The mutation, mapped to the BICD2 gene, resulted in a severe form of SMA-LED, type 2B, that emerged before birth and was primarily marked by joint contractures in infancy.
The activity of many genes may be dysregulated in spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), but the way the disease affects genes seems to vary across different types of tissues in the body, a study found. “Our comparative meta-analysis identified only few genes and pathways that were consistently dysregulated in SMA…
Young children with severe spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) have substantial loss of motor neurons in the thoracic region of the spinal cord, the area between the neck and the bottom of the ribs, a study found. The study provides a detailed look at SMA pathology in the spinal cord,…
Taldefgrobep alfa did not significantly improve motor function across the total population of treated spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) patients in a pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial, but significant improvements were seen among Caucasian participants. That’s according to trial results announced by the therapy’s developer, Biohaven Pharmaceuticals. The…
Gene therapy that selectively delivers the SMN1 gene to the liver reduced alterations related to spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) in a mouse model, restoring muscle size and correcting pancreatic issues. Mice that received liver-specific SMN1 also lived longer, performed better on motor tasks, and had fewer liver problems than untreated…
At Cure SMA’s 13th annual Hope on the Hill event in Washington, D.C., spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) patients, their families, lawmakers, and other advocates gathered to celebrate recent progress in disease research and legislative priorities for the SMA community. Among the speakers at the event were several members…
Slightly more than half of spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) patients in Australia who gave feedback for a study on how well they thought their treatments worked did not notice any improvement. The researchers said the results suggest a need for better, more comprehensive healthcare. More children than adults with…
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