Cystic fibrosis care in Chile

Abstract

Purpose of review: Cystic fibrosis (CF) has been underdiagnosed and undertreated for many years in Latin American countries, including Chile. This article describes the evolution of CF care in view of recent reforms in healthcare delivery in Chile, and the opportunities that exist to improve outcomes.

Recent findings: The characteristics of the population of CF patients are described using recently collected data. Unfortunately, current data do not allow an accurate assessment of CF care in Chile. The situation is similar elsewhere in Latin America. Further, we describe the obstacles to achieving optimum CF care, among them lack of expertise among healthcare professionals, dispersion of patients between private and public health systems, and limited laboratory infrastructure despite significant economic growth and improvement in national health indices. We discuss different avenues to enhance CF care in Chile and Latin America.

Summary: Centralization and organization of CF care within centers of excellence employing 'best practices' and engaging in quality-improvement initiatives, and the creation of national data registries represent important steps to improve survival, diminish morbidity, and allow more extensive participation of Latin American CF patients in multicenter clinical research.