Saturday 04 October 2008, San José, Costa
Rica
Heavy Rains Kill
At Least 7 In Nicaragua
Guatemala´s
Colom Urges to Fight
Violence
US Blockade Harmed Cuban
Children With Heart
Disease
Venezuela
Unflapped over Eco-Crisis
Brazil Seizes 8 Tons Of
Marijuana
|
US Blockade Harmed Cuban
Children With Heart
Disease
HAVANA - The US
economic, comercial and
financial blockade on
Cuba hindered last year
the supply of inputs to
attend children
suffering from
cardiovascular diseases.
Washington´s punitive
measure, in force for
almost half a century,
included the denial to
buy in the US elements
destined to practice
several surgery
procdures.
Besides that limitation,
Cuban Public Health
authorities had to buy
in distant markets
whatever was necessary
to attend child
patients, meaning
additional costs
amounting to 245
thousand 72 dollars.
A report presented by
Cuba to the United
Nations Organization
also says that US
restrictions made it
impossible to access
adequate equipment to
carry out
interventionist
cathetherism.
This is used to close
congenial defects of the
heart and the company
Boston Scientific and
Ampliatzer denied to
sell them, provoking
delays in the waiting
listo f children in need
of open-heart surgery.
The affected infants run
the risk of
complications in their
state of health and they
can even die, according
to medical reports.
On the other hand, the
government of the United
States prevented
manufacturers from
selling such equipment
for diagnostic images,
used in modern Oncology
for its higher precision
to Cuban institutions.
The Institute of
Oncology and
Radiobiology was
affected in 288 thousand
355 dollars due to the
need to buy the
equipment in distant
markets.
The blockade made it
impossible for the
Caribbean nation to buy
a gene sequencer,
essential for the work
of the Centro Nacional
de Genetica Medica, only
manufactured by US
companies.
But Washington also
banned the sale to Cuba
of prothesic valves used
in the hemodynamic
activities and even
denied the sale of
syringes to administer
insuline to diabetic
patients, compelling
Cuba to buy these in
Asian markets at a
higher cost.
Another negative aspect
of the siege is that the
academia relations
between both countries
was limited by the
denial of visas to Cuban
specialists that should
attend events,
conferences or
experience exchanges in
that country. |
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