Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 7
By Elchin Mehdiyev – Trend:
Azerbaijan will start to perform corneal transplant surgeries in the coming weeks, Farah Abdulaliyeva, leading researcher at the Zarifa Aliyeva National Ophthalmology Center, told reporters in Baku Nov. 7.
“More than 3,000 patients, waiting for corneal transplantation, have been registered at the National Ophthalmology Center,” she said, adding that 20 percent of them are children.
Abdulaliyeva stressed that cornea is planned to be imported to Azerbaijan from the US, Iran and Russia.
"Negotiations were held and an agreement was reached with donor banks from US, Iran and Russia," she said. “In the coming weeks, the eye cornea will be imported into Azerbaijan."
“At first, cornea will be transplanted to the patients who need urgent surgery,” she said. “Surgeries will be performed at the National Ophthalmology Center.”
President Ilham Aliyev in a decree Nov. 3 permitted the import of cornea into Azerbaijan.