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Spinal muscular atrophy explained: Key facts at a glance

Spinal muscular atrophy is a rare genetic condition that weakens muscles by affecting the motor nerve cells in the spinal cord. It is a leading genetic cause of infant death, but advances in research and treatment have the potential to change outcomes. This infographic gives a quick overview of SMA.

In this infographic:

  • What causes spinal muscular atrophy?
  • Carriers and inheritance
  • Symptoms and types
  • Diagnosis and treatment
  • Raise awareness
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To learn more about SMA, read our blog article Spinal muscular atrophy: A race against the clock.

References

The infographic was compiled using information from the following sources:

Chen, Xiao, et al. “Spinal Muscular Atrophy Diagnosis and Carrier Screening from Genome Sequencing Data.” Genetics in Medicine, vol. 22, no. 5, 1 May 2020, pp. 945–953, www.nature.com/articles/s41436-020-0754-0#ref-CR6, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41436-020-0754-0.

Lefebvre, S, et al. “Identification and Characterization of a Spinal Muscular Atrophy-Determining Gene.” Cell, vol. 80, no. 1, 1995, pp. 155–65, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7813012/, https://doi.org/10.1016/0092-8674(95)90460-3.

Kolb, Stephen J., et al. “Molecular Functions of the SMN Complex.” Journal of Child Neurology, vol. 22, no. 8, Aug. 2007, pp. 990–994, https://doi.org/10.1177/0883073807305666.

Wirth, Brunhilde, et al. “Twenty-Five Years of Spinal Muscular Atrophy Research: From Phenotype to Genotype to Therapy, and What Comes Next.” Annual Review of Genomics and Human Genetics, vol. 21, no. 1, 31 Aug. 2020, pp. 231–261, https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-genom-102319-103602.

Butchbach, Matthew E. R. “Copy Number Variations in the Survival Motor Neuron Genes: Implications for Spinal Muscular Atrophy and Other Neurodegenerative Diseases.” Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences, vol. 3, no. 7, 10 Mar. 2016, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4785180/, https://doi.org/10.3389/fmolb.2016.00007.

Cleveland Clinic. “Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA).” Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, 6 Jun 2024, https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/14505-spinal-muscular-atrophy-sma. Accessed 05 Jun 2025

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