Filariasis is a parasitic
disease (an infectious tropical disease) that is
Cabrera has more than a
hundred scientific publications concerning medical parasitology and public
vigour. Born March 20 of the year 1920, Cabrera finished his degree in the University
of the Philippines in 1945. He continued his education in Tulane University in
New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. He got his Master’s degree in in Public Health major
in Medical Parasitology and Public Health in the said university and graduated
in the year of 1950.
Doctor Cabrera’s works are
mostly about innovations in cures and treatments for diseases caused by
mosquitos and agricultural soil. One of his best works is about a research
regarding the tropical disease, Filariasis. Filariasis is caused by small
roundworms transmitted by mosquitoes and other blood-sucking insects. Doctor
Cabrera studied the life cycles of these roundworms. He also studied the different
ways of how the Filariasis is being transmitted to humans. Because of this
research, a cure for Filariasis was innovated. Doctor Cabrera was even given an
award from the president of the country for this work.
Doctor Cabrera not only
worked on researches for Filariasis. He also did a research for Ascariasis. Filariasis
is caused by small roundworms transmitted by mosquitoes and other blood-sucking
insects. Like Filariasis, Ascariasis is a tropical disease caused by insects. Symptoms
increase with the number of worms present and may include shortness of breath
and fever in the beginning of the disease. These may be followed by symptoms of
abdominal swelling, abdominal pain and diarrhea. Children are most commonly
affected and in this age group the infection may also cause poor weight gain,
malnutrition and learning problems. And with the model that Doctor Cabrera
proposed, the hazards produced by the soil-transmitted helminths were reduced.
Precautionary
measures in the method of drug treatments of human cases as well as measure in
contradiction of the mosquito vectors can be instigated because of the explication
or clarification of the epidemiology. Also in 1961, Doctor
Cabrera collaborated with Lee M. Howard. Lee M. Howard is a regent’s professor
of Physics in the University of Georgia. Together, they discovered they created
the first field study of Simian Malaria in the Philippines. They found out that
only malaria occurred just 8.6% of all the animals tested. Even though the
study was very inadequate, the statement recommended that the simian reservoir
of malaria is probably of limited importance for the human population in the
Philippines.
Benjamin Cabrera may
not be as famous as other Filipino scientists but he surely is a hardworking
one. He had a hundred scientific publications and had helped a lot in the
exploration in his own field. It is quite rare for someone to choose a field as
unique as parasitology. And indeed, Doctor Benjamin Cabrera’s works are really
of great help and contribution.
Joana Marie Garcia | 2013 16420 | STS THX | Individual Project
References:
- Bellis, Mary. About.com Investors. Benjamin Cabrera - Filipino Scientist. http://inventors.about.com/od/filipinoscientists/p/BenjaminCabrera.htm
- Schwarzmann, Jason. Blurtit.com. What are Benjamin Cabrera's contributions? http://health.blurtit.com/1002143/what-benjamin-cabrera-contribution
- Ask.com. What Are the Achievements and Biography of Benjamin Cabrera? http://www.ask.com/question/biography-of-filipino-scientists
- Famous Scientist - Benjamin Cabrera. http://www.famousscientists.org/benjamin-cabrera/
- About.com Investors. Filipino Investors and Filipino Scientists. http://inventors.about.com/od/filipinoscientists/
- Famous Filipino. Benjamin Cabrera. http://www.famousfilipino.com/content/view/35/130/
- PhilPro.ph. Benjamin Cabrera. http://philpro.ph/benjamin-cabrera
- TakdangAralin.com. Health Scientist: Benjamin Cabrera. http://www.takdangaralin.com/science/scientists/health-scientist-dr-benjamin-cabrera/
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