11,000 open-heart surgeries performed in Azerbaijan in 2 years

Over the past two years, 11,000 open-heart surgeries have been performed in Azerbaijan, Ramil Aliyev, Chairman of the Azerbaijan Society of Cardiovascular Surgery, said at the roundtable discussion under the theme, The first heart transplant in the Caucasus: A historic achievement of Azerbaijani healthcare and future perspectives, Report informs.

Aliyev mentioned that the number of open-heart surgeries in Azerbaijan has significantly increased following the introduction of mandatory health insurance:

"In 2005, only one open-heart surgery was performed in Azerbaijan. However, in the past two years, after the implementation of mandatory health insurance in the country, this figure has grown considerably."