Although it is rare, the treatment of SMA (Spinal Muscular Atrophy), which is a very dangerous hereditary disease with its effects on the nervous and muscular system, is difficult and costly. It is possible for families to determine their risks beforehand with the SMA carrier test, which was started to be performed at the Near East University Hospital for the first time in the TRNC.

SMA (Spinal Muscular Atrophy), which has become one of the important agendas in the TRNC in recent months, is a progressive, hereditary disease characterized by the deterioration of tissues in the brain, brain stem and spinal cord, and muscle weakness. SMA is seen in one of every 10 thousand people in the world. Carriage is much more common. Scientific research shows that one out of every 60 people in the world is a carrier of SMA. Determining whether people who plan to have a baby are carriers of SMA is of vital importance to reduce the frequency of the disease.

SMA carrier tests, which are said to be among the tests that should be done before marriage by specialists, started to be performed at the Near East University Hospital for the first time in the TRNC. Near East University Hospital Medical Genetics Laboratory Supervisor Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mahmut Çerkez Ergören stated that the possibility of encountering SMA will decrease even more, thanks to the carrier test.

It is important to have carrier tests to prevent genetic diseases.
Carrier tests reveal the presence of certain genetic disorders in individuals. Tests performed before or during pregnancy can measure the baby’s risk of having a hereditary disease. Thus, the transmission of diseases from generation to generation can be prevented. The SMA carrier test, on the other hand, shows whether there is a risk for the presence of SMA in the baby of the couple.

Reminding that the SMA carrier test was included in the routine tests required before marriage in Turkey, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mahmut Çerkez Ergören said, “As the treatment processes of SMA are quite costly, aid campaigns are frequently organized in our country and in Turkey for many babies with SMA. However, the real solution should be to identify and eliminate this risk beforehand.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ergören uses the expression “In couples who have had a child with SMA before, the risk of SMA in their next child is 25 percent”.

Results can be obtained in 48 hours in SMA carrier tests!
SMA carrier tests, which are performed by the Near East University Hospital Medical Genetics Laboratory, are concluded and reported within 48 hours. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mahmut Çerkez Ergören said, “There is no need to wait for weeks for the SMA carrier test, which was previously serviced by foreign laboratories. As Near East University Hospital, we will continue to expand and carry out our services for public health.”