Neurosurgery in the Dutch Antilles: A minireview of recent developments

Abstract

Curaçao is an island in the Southern Caribbean Sea, which formed part of the Dutch Antilles and Aruba, Bonaire, part of Saint Martin, Saba, and Statia. Aruba was the first country of the Dutch Antilles to dissolute in 1986 (1). On October 10th of 2010, Curaçao and Saint Martin also became constituent countries within the Dutch kingdom. Bonaire, Saba, and Statia became “special municipalities,” also known as administrative divisions, within the Dutch state (2).

Curaçao is the biggest of the six islands, with an area of 444 km2/ 171.4 sq.mi, situated 65 km (40mi) north of the Venezuelan coast (3). Curaçao is of multi-cultural composition (mainly Afro-Caribbean) and has three official languages; Papiamentu, Dutch, and English. Spanish is widely spoken on the island as well.3 It has a little less the 160,000 inhabitants (4).