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Newspaper story prompts personal intervention by Scottish leader in health wrangle

The First Minister of Scotland stepped in to help a seriously ill baby after reading about his plight in a local newspaper.

The Press and Journal, in Aberdeen, reported on little Sean Tye who needed a lifesaving course of enzyme replacement therapy.

The youngster suffers from a rare condition called Pompe disease which affects the heart and muscles.

When Alex Salmond MSP read the story, he personally intervened to make sure NHS Grampian administered a course of the drug Myozyme.

Doctors at Glasgow’s Yorkhill Hospital where Sean is being cared for were given the go-ahead to start the £50,000 treatment.

It is the first time its use had been funded by a health board north of the border.

Sean’s parents live in Mr Salmond’s constituency. Doctors at the Glasgow hospital had been at odds with administrators who feared that by giving the go ahead in this case, it could set a precedent for future Pompe sufferers in Scotland.

The Journal understands that four other people in Scotland are currently awaiting approval to be treated with Myozyme.