CIREN President Highlights Cuba-Chile Scientific Exchange

The president of the International Neurological Restoration Center (CIREN), Emilio Villa Acosta, noted here the importance of scientific exchange between Cuba and Chile. In an interview with Prensa Latina during a visit to this capital, the doctor highlighted the over-20-year-old relations between experts from the two countries.

We are interested in maintaining and boosting relations with institutions such as the J.J. Aguirre Hospital and other neurology and neurological rehabilitation centers, as well as groups that work like us in the recovery of lost function due to damage to the nervous system, he said.

Villa Acosta underlined that among more than 90 countries that send patients to Cuba, Chile is among the top ten, as well as Argentina, Mexico, Venezuela, Spain, Italy and Portugal.

The doctor described his visit to Chile as positive to further scientific exchanges between neurologists and brain surgeons from the two countries.

The Cuban experts visited the hospital of Carabineers, the Workers' Hospital and the J.J. Aguirre Hospital, as well as the Neurosurgery Institute, among other facilities.

A group of institutions with which we have had relations for many years and with which we are working to boost and further develop academic and scientific exchange and, of course, the mutually-beneficial sharing of techniques.

Villa Acosta informed that the CIREN office, which will be headed by Hector Argiles, will be inaugurated in Chile soon.

For CIREN, a center that works on both clinical and preclinical neurosciences, exchange is very important today, as a way to improve results and knowledge, he added.

The expert noted that exchange allows large investment in that field to become profitable sooner.

Chile and Cuba are part of the same problem. People are getting older and more aging-related diseases are detected, neurodegenerative diseases. We refer to Parkinson's Alzheimer's disease and others, the CIREN president noted.

He also mentioned cerebral-vascular diseases that are closely linked to modern life, like the metabolic syndrome, hypertension, obesity, high cholesterol level and stress, among others.

CIREN's neuro-restorative medicine is comprehensive, he added.

We do preclinical, clinical medicine, surgery, rehabilitation and technology transfer, he noted.

Regarding US President Barack Obama's statements about easing or lifting the blockade, the doctor said it would be beneficial for health care.

If this continues advancing and the final goal is reached with normal relations, and we can have access to technologies and medications that we cannot receive now, everything would be more efficient, Villa Acosta underlined.

For CIREN and for Cuba, its people, this is an important sign that I wish it materialized. It is excellent end year's news, he concluded.