site.bta 12th Bulgarian Christmas Charity Campaign Raises Lv 1.5 Mln

12th Bulgarian Christmas Charity Campaign Raises Lv 1.5 Mln


Sofia, December 26 (BTA) - The 12th annual Bulgarian Christmas
charity campaign collected nearly 1.5 million leva in support of
 children with congenital diseases, it emerged after the end of
a fund-raising performance that took place at the Ivan Vazov
National Theatre on Christmas Day under the patronage of
President Rosen Plevneliev, his Press Secretariat said on
Friday.

Contributions can be sent within the framework of the campaign
throughout the year.

Prominent Bulgarian musicians, athletes, actors and journalists
took part in the Bulgarian Christmas concert mottoed "We Are
One". This year the performance was implemented by the teams of
24/7 and Old School and was broadcast live on the Bulgarian
National Television and the Bulgarian National Television.

Each year about 3,500 babies in Bulgaria are born with
congenital diseases. Some of these conditions lead to
life-threatening complications, while the absence of timely
diagnosing and treatment result into lifelong disabilities and,
sometimes, even death. Heart diseases have the greatest
incidence among congenital diseases in Bulgaria: Between 600 and
 700 babies with congenital heart defects are born annually.
About 45 per cent of them need surgery, and in many cases it is
performed as soon as the baby is born or in the first two or
three years of their lives. Other common congenital diseases
affect the nervous and of the respiratory systems.

The 2014/2015 Bulgarian Christmas aims to help these children by
 specialist diagnostics, pharmacotherapy and rehabilitation and
to procure state-of-the-art equipment for regional and
university hospitals countrywide, the press release said.