Infant mortality rate remains low in Cuba

A child plays at the Prado Boulevard in downtown Havana on Dec 29, 2014. Alexandre Meneghini / Reuters

The infant mortality rate in Cuba remained at 4.2 per thousand live births in 2014, the same level as in the previous year and the lowest in the country's history, a local health official said on Jan 3.

The figure puts Cuba among the nations with low infant mortality rate, said Dr. Roberto Alvarez Fumero, chief of the Infantile Maternal Program in the Cuban Public Health Ministry.

The local health system worked hard to reduce prematurity in pregnant women in 2014, and reduced the risk of premature birth, he was quoted as saying by the official daily Granma.

More efficient use of the beds in maternal homes and perfect obstetric care increased the survival of those newborns with less than 1,500 grams in weight.

This achievement should be attributed to Cuba's health system, which emphasized the diagnosis, handling and prevention of congenital defects and genetic illnesses, Alvarez said.

Congenital defects and genetic illnesses represented 21 percent of the total deaths in Cuba, he added.

Health and education systems are free and universal in Cuba, hailed as the main prides of Cuba's government.