The number of Costa Rican girls that are battling obesity is growing at an alarming rate a situation that is affecting practically every country in the world, a condition that is now considered a pandemic. A report by the Center for Non-Communicable Diseases and the World Health Organization (WHO) which analyzed 2,416 studies carried out from 1975 through 2016 that measured weight and height of...

The Costa Rican Children’s Hospital has been requesting the help of the general population to get enough diapers to satisfy the demand which is of close to 300 thousand diapers a year. The medical center provides assistance to an average 13,500 children annually with different conditions, an about a 70% use diapers. Some patients require constant diaper changes as is the case of children with ...

The Costa Rican Social Security Agency (CCSS, in Spanish) said they will publish later this year a tender in order to select the company that will design, build and equip a 70,000 square meter hospital in Puntarenas, on Costa Rica's central Pacific coast. The new hospital will be located in Barranca, and will open in 2021 with a substantially larger and improved infrastructure, and more service...

Taking care of your children’s teeth is as important as taking them to their regular pediatric visit; it will help your children maintain overall health, avoid cavities and rotten teeth, prevent problems with their nutrition, self-image, etc. Many times parents tend to not give too much thought or importance to the baby’s oral hygiene specially in the first years of life; there is in fact a mis...

AirXpanders a medical device company focused on the design, manufacture, sale and distribution of the AeroForm® Tissue Expander System, today announced that its manufacturing transfer to a contract manufacturer in Costa Rica is complete and manufacturing capability for its AeroForm device is operational. Additional production capacity will enable the company to cost-effectively manufacture a highe...

Walmart stores in Costa Rica are launching a campaign starting September 30 and every weekend in October to help breast cancer patients in the country. Hair stylists will be present at each of the 11 locations the supermarket chain has and will cut the hair of all those willing to donate it to elaborate wigs for patients battling breast cancer. “An approximate 900 people contributed with th...

Article 121 of the Costa Rican Penal Code states that "abortion practiced with the consent of a woman by a doctor or an authorized obstetrician is not punishable if it has been done in order to avoid danger to the life or health of the mother." However, in recent years women in Costa Rica with high-risk pregnancies that threaten their health have found it difficult and at times impossible to us...

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) recognized Dr. Stella Bolaños Varela of Costa Rica Monday, September 25, for her outstanding career and longstanding commitment to the quality and management of health services in Costa Rica, by presenting her with the 2017 PAHO Award for Health Services Management and Leadership Services. The award recognizes Bolaños Varela's outstanding contribution...

The group of rheumatologists at the public San Juan de Dios Hospital in San José, Costa Rica opened an arthritis clinic, in order to treat patients in the early stages of the disease. People who present possible symptoms of arthritis are scheduled for medical appointments on Thursday mornings at the clinic for early detection screenings. From January to date, about 300 people have gone throu...

October usually brings several walks to raise awareness about breast cancer and also raise funds for the treatment of patients that are battling different forms of cancer in Costa Rica; this year is no exception. The first event, “Corre por mí” (Run for Me), will take place this Sunday, October 1st at 6:30 a.m. going out from the National Stadium in La Sabana. This event offers several modalit...

The CCSS, which are the initials for Costa Rica's public healthcare system, the Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social, is launching an innovative breast cancer prevention program targeting healthy women aged 45 - 69, said the institution this week. By 2020, and with an investment of over 9 billion colones (over US$15 million), the CCSS hopes to have all women in Costa Rica in that age range inclu...

The Costa Rica Health Ministry has declared sanitary alert in the country for malaria due to an increase in the risk of transmission after knowing of an important number of infected patients in Nicaragua. Although between the years 2012 and 2015 Costa Rica had not had any malaria cases there were a few patients in 2016 and this year there have been isolated native cases, four in Matina (Limón),...

  Starting this week and lasting until November 30, hearings are taking place at the San José Criminal Court on the case of five men who are accused of illicit trafficking of human organs in Costa Rica. The defendants are Mauro, Fonseca, Monge, Katsigiannis and Mora and are allegedly part of a transnational organization dedicated to human organ trafficking. The men were arrested in 2...

More details are starting to become available on the deadly small aircraft crash early this morning near the Pavas, San José airport which affected six individuals. However, Nature Air, who operated the flight, said they were not making public statements on the event due to the fact that the crash is under investigation by the Civil Aviation Department. A woman identified as Costa Rican Marí...

The scourge of drug abuse and addiction can affect anyone, regardless of gender, social status, education or age. Teens are no exception, to the point where opioid drug overdose deaths among teenagers 15 to 19 years-old increased by 15% for males from 2014 to 2015 and an astonishing 35% for females from 2013 to 2015 according to a report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. ...

Ninety low-income women in Costa Rica will benefit from a donation of mammograms by the country's most widely read tabloid, Diario Extra, said that paper in a recent report. The women will be selected by the Lazos or "ties" program at the San José Bíblica Hospital, which is a support program for breast cancer victims sponsored by Grupo Mutual and Banca Kristal. "We are working hand in hand wit...

Both male and female condoms as well as lubricants will be handed out on Costa Rica's recently declared condom promotion day, said the Ministry of Health in a press statement. This year, Monday, September 4 marks the first year of what will become an annual event on that date to promote the use of condoms in the country. The country's public healthcare facilities will be handing out condoms ...

The case of four medical doctors and a Greek businessman suspected of running an illegal organ trafficking operation out of Costa Rica is moving forward. The Office of the Prosecutor Against Organized Crime (FACDO, its initials in Spanish) cited 25 witnesses to appear in court to testify in the case. The Costa Rican Judicial Investigation Agency (OIJ) and Public Security Ministry uncovered t...

The so-called "morning after" pill can be used by women in most of the world as a form of emergency contraception to prevent pregnancy; but so far not legally in Costa Rica. For the third time the topic is under consideration by government medical authorities, reported the pharmaco-epidemiology committee of the Costa Rican Social Security Agency (CCSS). The pill can be used by women for up t...

Helicopters used to transport people who need medical attention can now land on the northeast side of the Calderón Guardia Hospital  - a major public health facility near downtown San José, Costa Rica, announced Columbia Radio 98.7 FM this week. The first such transport took place over the weekend when a patient with an apparent heart problem was airlifted by medical helicopter from Santa Maria...

About 80 representatives from the Costa Rican Social Security Agency (CCSS) will gather later this month to analyze the agency's role in addressing different forms of violence facing communities across the country, said the state public health entity in a statement. The event is part of an institutional program to standardize a public health approach to violence prevention at a time when differ...

Costa Rica inaugurated its new Center for Pain and Palliative Care of the Social Security Administration (CCSS) that will benefit between 10-12 thousand patients. The new infrastructure had a cost of 6,300 million colones (almost 11 million USD) and include 5,950 square meters of construction that provide services such as: specialized medical services, day hospital, palliative care interventi...

One of the main recommendations of a recent report on Costa Rica by the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) relates to the country failing to fulfill its human rights obligations regarding women's access to in vitro fertilization treatments. Gladys Jiménez, director of the ombud's office on women, reiterated the report's call for the state to act ...

Editor’s note: The views expressed by guest columnists are not necessarily those of The Costa Rica Star, its advertisers, or its staff.  The establishment republicans, democrats and mainstream media sure seem to be involved in a conspiracy against President Donald Trump and his agenda for America. There is a lot of good going on in the United States these days, but you won’t hear much about it ...

The Costa Rica Social Security Authority (C.C.S.S.) raised the alert of low reserves of blood to care for hospitalized patients. According to CCSS the blood donation has decreased considerably since November of 2016, going from 550 donors a month to only 320, which has caused at times the suspension of surgeries due to low reserves of blood. The Social Security is calling on the population ...

There is a direct relation between the increase of heroin use and the epidemic of prescribed opioids such as oxycodone, hydrocodone (Vicodin), codeine, morphine, among others. According to the New York Times preliminary data shows that drug overdose deaths in 2016 exceeded 59 thousand, an increase of close to 20% in relation with 2015; out of the total overdose deaths an approximate 35 thousand...

The La Cruz Health Area in Costa Rica's northern Guanacaste province has begun providing contraceptive implants to women under a program supported by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), reported the Costa Rican Social Security Agency (CCSS) last week. More than 400 women have opted for the new offering, which has been included among the public healthcare area's other birth control metho...

Being constantly stressed has a lot of negative repercussions in our body, our teeth, believe it or not, are also affected by our hectic life. Recently actress Demi Moore, made an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, and she went on to explain that she had sheared off her front teeth, both of them, because of stress. “Stress over a long period of time, or what is considered chro...

Editor’s note: The views expressed by guest columnists are not necessarily those of The Costa Rica Star, its advertisers, or its staff.  Finally the Democrats are talking about something that will get a lot of attention besides Russia Fever – single-payer universal healthcare – just like most of the civilized world already has. “Single-payer is on the table,” said U.S. Sen. Chuck Schum...

An international study on pediatric cardiac surgery found outstanding results at the Costa Rican National Children's Hospital, said the Costa Rican Social Security Agency (CCSS) which runs the country's public healthcare system. The study looked at in 55 hospitals worldwide and was carried out by the Boston Children's Hospital in partnership with Harvard University. The findings showed that ...

Ticks are insects commonly found in several animals, from deer to bats, cattle, and of course house pets. There are a variety of tick-borne diseases, the most common ones, but not the only ones, being Lyme disease and ehrlichiosis. In Nicoya, Guanacaste, Costa Rican scientists discovered new bacteria of the group of the Ricckettsiae, which was named “Candidatus Rickettsia Nicoyana”; the bacteri...

The Government of Japan delivered a several devices that will strengthen the diagnostic and treatment capacity of urology services at Costa Rica's National Rehabilitation Center (CENARE), said the Costa Rican government in a statement. "This donation from the Government of Japan allows us to carry out high technology procedures, thereby reducing risks and optimizing care. At the same time, they...

Costa Rica's aging population, together with risk factors that are becoming more common such as smoking, alcohol, poor diet, obesity and sedentary lifestyle are some of the reasons for increasing rates of new cancer cases and also deaths due to cancer, said the Costa Rican Ministry of Health. In 2015 - the most recent data available - 4,667 people died from cancer - which averages 12 people per...

Medical tourism in Costa Rica presents a constant growth since 2012, many health care professionals and health care centers know the potential this market represents and have made efforts to appeal to this growing clientele. In 2015 the country received almost 25 thousand more patients than in 2012, going from close to 45 thousand in 2012 to almost 70 thousand in 2015 according to data provided...

Clinica Bíblica had already announced an investment of approximately USD $19 million in its new location in Santa Ana which is expected to be ready before the end of 2018 and involves 7,000 square meters of the hospital building and 8,000 square meters for parking lot. This same medical center has also confirmed the construction of two new clinics, one in Heredia and another one in Tres Ríos wi...

The human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) causes infections of the lungs and respiratory system. It is most common in babies and young children, although it can also affect adults. The Costa Rica Ministry of Health has declared a sanitary alert due to the increase of respiratory infections associated with RSV. The alert calls on public and private health centers to increase vigilance of respira...

When we think about leading causes of death in the United States, we probably think about heart disease or perhaps a type of cancer; however, a recent investigation by the New York Times states that drug overdoses are now the leading cause of death among Americans under 50 year-of-age. That's right, more than gun violence, car accidents and heart attacks.  Parents are burying their children from O...

The Costa Rican Social Security Agency (CCSS), which runs the country's national public health system, announced the availability of a highly effective treatment for Hepatitis C. Whereas previously the virus was visually impossible to treat in a definitive manner, a pill became available in the U.S. in 2014 which gave up to 99 percent cure rates using a 12 - 24 week treatment, according to scie...

Over 1,000 people in the area of Garabito, Puntarenas have been affected by a conjunctivitis outbreak, this includes the areas of Herradura, Jacó, Tárcoles, Quebrada Ganado and Quebrada Amarilla, according to information provided by the Costa Rica Public Health and Social Security Administration (C.C.S.S). Authorities suspect the outbreak is caused by a virus, but the C.C.S.S. is still waiting ...

Dentists have certainly become a new tourist attraction in Costa Rica; excellent, professional care, affordable prices and the possibility of getting dental work done while enjoying vacation time are certainly good reasons. According to data by ProMed, the Costa Rican Health Chamber, which was created to ensure that international patients visiting Costa Rica receive consistent, high-quality med...