Adorable moment poorly baby smiles and laughs during musical therapy at Bristol Children’s Hospital

This is the adorable moment a baby undergoing hospital treatment smiled and laughed - while undergoing musical therapy.

Five-month-old Laurie can be seen sharing a touching moment with his music therapist, who softly sings and strums to him during their second session together.

The baby was alive for only two days when he was admitted to Bristol Children’s Hospital after growing severely unwell due to his bowels twisting.

With the condition cutting off his blood supply, little Laurie had to undergo emergency surgery to remove 90% of his small intestines.

And the lifesaving surgery has now left the youngster with short gut syndrome, meaning he can only be given small amounts of milk through his mouth.

Laurie is now mainly fed through a process called parenteral nutrition - and attends regular musical therapy sessions to help aid his communication skills.

Mother Emily Marlowe, 29, explained how at first, she “didn’t know what music therapy entailed” yet “straight away she (the therapist) made a connection with him”.

She described witnessing Laurie’s first reaction of smiling and ‘dancing’ to the music, adding: “It made me cry, it was so moving, it’s really hard to describe.”

Thanks to Laurie’s weekly sessions, “his communication has come leaps and bounds”, Emily said.

She added: “It’s so amazing we got offered this opportunity for him and our family since it was a pretty tough start for us all.”

Senior music therapist Claire Fraser-Tytler, who works for Music Space, was referred to Laurie via the Grand Appeal Charity which aims to help save the lives of children and provide support for their families.

She said: “Music therapy is a way to help children explore their feelings around their diagnosis and their hospital stay through live improvised music.

“It also helps their parents and family.”

You can find out more about the Grand Appeal by clickinghere