RIYADH: The cardiac center at the King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center (KFSHRC) in the Saudi capital has entered the top 10 percent of the world’s heart centers in the number of annual transplants.
The list is based on statistics of the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT).
Dr. Jehad Al-Buraiki, consultant and head of the KFSHRC’s cardiology center, said that the center was able to transplant 35 hearts in 2017, including seven to children under the age of 14.
He said that the success rate was 87 percent, which is comparable to the averages of 250 heart centers in the US.
Al-Buraiki said that last year the hospital witnessed the cultivation of seven hearts for children whose health varied between myocardial infarction, weaknesses resulting from the repair of congenital heart defects and cases that could not wait for the availability of a donor and required artificial heart pumps.
He added that the heart transplant program in Al-Takhasami has a follow-up team that conducts internationally approved periodic tests for the implantation of artificial heart pumps.
He said that “heart transplants in the hospital amounted to 302 since the start of the program in 1989 until the end of 2017.”
King Faisal Specialist Hospital’s cardiac center among world’s top 10% in transplant surgeries
King Faisal Specialist Hospital’s cardiac center among world’s top 10% in transplant surgeries
Jazan University foreign scholarship scheme thriving as intake hits 2,100
- 344 students from 20 countries enroll in 2025
- Program provides platform for boosting cultural understanding, intellectual moderation
RIYADH: Jazan University enrolled 344 students into its foreign scholarship program this year, taking the total since its inception to 2,100.
The latest intake represent more than 20 countries, including France, Canada, the Russian Federation and several Arab, African and Asian nations, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
As well as helping the university to increase its global standing, the program provides a platform for enhancing relationships between people from around the world, and nurturing cultural understanding and intellectual moderation, the report said.
Jazan University is regarded as a leading scientific institution within the Kingdom and the wider Arab world. It champions the message of Islam and the teaching of the Arabic language, while promoting the values of moderation, balance and understanding among people.
As well as the educational benefits, students enrolled on the scholarship program have access to a comprehensive healthcare package, which includes their accompanying family members, and various financial support options to cover shipping costs and the purchase of relevant materials and equipment.
The university also provides free flights home at the end of each academic year to ensure its students’ well-being.
A recent beneficiary of the scheme is Obaidur Rahman Abdul Hannan.
“This is an important academic project, which not only helps the meritorious students but also serves the purpose for achieving cultural understanding and intellectual moderation, making it an ambitious project deserving praise and appreciation both locally and internationally,” he told Arab News.
“Saudi Arabia is emerging as a global hub for higher education, offering a plethora of fully funded scholarships to international students across various disciplines.
“These scholarships by Jazan University, with excellent facilities, bearing all expenses, flight tickets, provide an excellent opportunity for non-Saudi students … to pursue various courses in such a prestigious university.”
Riyadh man faces prosecution for selling counterfeit pharmaceuticals
- SFDA said that violations pose a great risk to the health and safety of consumers
- SFDA also requested the public’s cooperation by reporting any observable violations
The Saudi Food and Drug Authority has referred the representative of a commercial establishment in Riyadh to the Public Prosecution after he was found to be involved in the sale of a counterfeit pharmaceutical product.
The act is a direct violation of the Pharmaceutical and Herbal Establishments and Products Law in the Kingdom, which mandates a penalty of up to 10 years’ imprisonment and a fine of SR10 million ($2.6 million), the Saudi Press Agency reported.
The SFDA highlighted the importance of strictly adhering to the laws and regulations put in place to ensure the safety and quality of products circulating in the Saudi market.
The authority said that violations pose a great risk to the health and safety of consumers, warranting the enforcement of legal penalties against offenders.
The SFDA also requested the public’s cooperation by reporting any observable violations in establishments under its supervision to the toll-free line 19999, in an effort to strengthen oversight and safeguard public health.
Saudi students display robotic inventions at Robocon 2025
- Event was attended by student inventors, investors and technology companies
- Several panel discussions focused on ways in which robotics can affect society
RIYADH: Saudi students displayed their robotic inventions at King Abdulaziz University Robocon 2025, which was held at the university’s King Faisal Convention Center from Tuesday to Thursday, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
Organized by the university’s Deanship of Student Affairs, the event was attended by student inventors, investors and technology companies.
Saudi student Samar Awad Al-Rabi, from the Faculty of Medical Rehabilitation Sciences at King Abdulaziz University, presented a smart temperature-monitoring device, aimed at protecting sensitive environments from sudden thermal changes.
Rania Al-Mukhtar Al-Sheikh, from Taibah University, presented an innovative treatment for dry macular degeneration, an eye disease that affects vision.
The device treats and repairs damaged cells, reduces inflammation, and improves bloodflow without damaging healthy tissues with the hope of restoring or improving vision.
Exhibition activities included a range of qualitative competitions, including the “Saqr” competition, which is the first engineering competition focused on drone technologies.
In another competition — the Robocup —robots battled it out on a miniature football pitch.
The event also featured the launch of the innovtech Hackathon, a coding challenge that will include four main tracks focusing on technology in education, tourism, manufacturing and the financial sector.
Several panel discussions focused on ways in which robotics can affect society — including one titled Turning Point: Transforming Tech Ideas into Successful Projects, which explored how to market technological inventions.
The exhibition offered a range of interactive experiences, including virtual reality exhibits and practical workshops that contributed to the skill development of participants.
An interactive game invited attendees to collect stamps from different attractions to win a prize, and visitors were served Arabic coffee by robots.
The university said that the event reflects its vision of empowering students and building a generation that will lead the future of robotics and smart technologies.
KAUST researchers join Africa marine research expedition
- Mission began in Moroni, Comoros, with the team sailing south through the Indian Ocean to Cape Town, South Africa
- Researchers focused on assessing biodiversity at several seamounts — underwater mountain formations
RIYADH: Researchers from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology joined the Saudi non-profit foundation OceanQuest on its first marine expedition around Africa aboard the research vessel OceanXplorer.
The mission began in Moroni, Comoros, with the team sailing south through the Indian Ocean to Cape Town, South Africa.
Researchers focused on assessing biodiversity at several seamounts — underwater mountain formations.
A second phase, designed for early-career oceanographers, proceeded north to Walvis Bay in Namibia before concluding scientific operations in Mindelo, Cabo Verde.
The KAUST research team, comprising two PhD candidates from the Marine Microbiome Lab and one from Earth Science and Engineering, conducted research in biodiversity assessment, seamount studies and chemical analysis.
The team compared seamount formation in the Indian Ocean with similar geological phenomena in Saudi waters.
Ministry of Tourism inspects hospitality facilities ahead of Hajj
- Al-Mazyad is assessing whether preparations and procedures of multiple hospitality establishments are following the tourism law and its executive regulations
RIYADH: Deputy Minister of Licensing and Classification at the Ministry of Tourism Abdulmuhsen Al-Mazyad has been conducting field tours of hospitality facilities in Makkah to ensure readiness for receiving pilgrims during the Hajj season.
Al-Mazyad is assessing whether preparations and procedures of multiple hospitality establishments are following the tourism law and its executive regulations.
The deputy minister is especially concerned about whether these establishments have obtained the proper operational licensing from the Ministry of Tourism.
As part of its efforts to grow sustainable partnerships with the tourism sector, the ministry’s delegation has also sat with hospitality investors and operators at the Makkah Chamber of Commerce.
Enhancing the quality of service in Makkah and the rest of the Kingdom, managing hardships faced by investors and operators, and the ministry’s commitment to combating those hardships, have all been discussed during the meetings.
