Abstract

OLIVARES ELEGIA, Magaly del Pilar; PEREZ PACAREU, Marisela  and  NARANJO ROBALINO, Rosa María. History and social aspects of allergy in Cuba. Rev Cubana Salud Pública [online]. 2011, vol.37, n.3, pp. 338-348. ISSN 0864-3466.

The allergy specialty is one of the most expensive disciplines in the medical practice in the developed countries, and one of the specialties almost absent in the underdeveloped countries. This is the reason why large sections of the population are left unattended and it is stated that allergy is a disease of rich people, the poor people do not suffer from dermal diseases; however, the realities show that the problem has to do with access to these services. A historical and social outline of this specialty in general and particularly in Cuba, where allergy exhibits different social organization compared with other countries, was presented. It focused on the humanist philosophy that supports this specialty and stated the efforts by the Cuban scientists to keep very low morbidity and mortality rates from these diseases in Cuba, comparable to those of the developed countries. The allergy specialty has increased its qualitative level since all the Cuban citizens get access to this service regardless of race, social status, economic conditions, political ideas or religious beliefs.

Keywords : allergy; history; social structure.

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