A consortium of clinicians from the United States, New Zealand and Brazil reports the results of a study aimed at investigating bulbar function in infants with type I proximal spinal muscular atrophy, whether symptomatic or not:
- 69 infants under twelve months of age were included in this retrospective study,
- 17 of whom had received innovative therapy while still asymptomatic,
- the BabyVFSSImP and Swallow Tail were the tools used for functional assessment,
- the other 52 infants began treatment after the onset of clinical symptoms,
- children treated at a presymptomatic stage almost never developed significant swallowing disorders, unlike those treated at a symptomatic stage.
This study is the first of its kind and indirectly confirms the usefulness of early detection and treatment of SMA from birth.
