What is SMA? Our son, Ryan has Spinal Muscular Atrophy or SMA Type 1. There are several types of SMA called subtypes, Type 1,2,3, and 4. Each of the subtypes is based on the severity of the disorder and the age at which symptoms begin. SMA is the leading genetic killer of children under the age of two. It is a terminal, degenerative disease that takes away a child’s ability to walk, stand, sit, eat, breathe and even swallow. It is usually inherited as an autosomal recessive trait (a person must get the defective gene from both parents to be affected).
Statistics:
SMA is the #1 genetic killer of children under the age of 2.
SMA is estimated to occur in nearly 1 out of every 6,000 births.
1 in 40 people are carriers for SMA.