In the first three months of the current year (started March 20), around 500 kg of artificial heart valves were imported, according to figures released by the Customs Office.
At present, at least 80% of all deaths in the country occur due to heart diseases, of which 15% is due to heart valves problems and diseases.
An artificial heart valve is a device implanted in the heart of a patient with valvular heart disease. When one of the four heart valves malfunctions, the medical choice may be to replace the natural valve with an artificial valve in an open-heart surgery.
More than half of the artificial valves were imported from the US (273 kg) and the rest from the Netherlands (132 kg) and Switzerland (45 kg), Alef News Agency reported.
