The Irish Motor Neurone Disease Association (IMNDA) is the primary care and support organisation for people living with MND, their families, caregivers, and friends. Its aim is to help everyone living with and affected by Motor Neurone Disease.

With motor neurone disease, known as MND, messages from the motor neurones gradually stop reaching the muscles. This leads the muscles to weaken, stiffen and waste, which can affect how you walk, talk, eat, drink and breathe. Some people also get changes to their thinking and behaviour, but the disease affects everyone differently.

Not all symptoms will affect everyone, or in the same order. Symptoms also progress at varying speeds, which makes the course of the disease difficult to predict.

MND is life-shortening and there is no cure. Although the disease will progress, symptoms can be managed to help achieve the best possible quality of life.

MND affects up to 5,000 adults in the UK at any one time. There is a 1 in 300 risk of getting MND across a lifetime. It can affect adults of any age, but is more likely to affect people over 50.

As motor neurone disease is not common, general health and social care professionals may not see many cases. This means it is important to seek out specialists who have appropriate experience in its treatment and care – usually with referral to neurological services.