History of Latin American Dermatology

Historical sketch of Chilean Dermatology1996–1998 President: María Isabel Herane; Vice-president: Mirtha Cifuentes Mutinelli;Secretary-General: Ximena Ancic Cortéz1998–2000 President: Iván Jara Padilla; Vice-president: Tirza Saavedra Umpierrez;Secretary-General: Hilda Rojas Pizarro2000–2002 President: Mirtha Cifuentes Mutinelli; Vice-president: Monserrat MolgóNovell; Secretary-General: Emilia Zegpi Trueba2002–2004 President: Raúl Cabrera Moraga; Vice-president: Hilda Rojas Pizarro; Secretary-General:Orietta Gómez Hanssen2004–2006 President: Hilda Rojas Pizarro; Vice-president: Félix Fich Schilcrot; Secretary-General:Orietta Gómez HanssenDermatological journals in Chile■ Dermatological journals in ChileThe SCDV’s first known publication was the Boletín de la Sociedad Chilena de Dermatologíay Sifiloglogía (its official organ), which appeared in 1945 and which only publishedthree issues; the reasons for its folding are unknown. The main party responsiblefor this bulletin was the then-secretary of the Society, Hernán Hevia, assisted by FlorencioPrats, Mauricio Weinstein and Roger Lamas. During his presidency (1972-1974),Daniel Villalobos published some SCDV bulletins with scientific and Society contents.Carlos Vera founded the Dermosur journal, devoted to contact and occupational dermatoses,which had a brief existence.The first substantial journal of Dermatology in Chile was promoted by the SCDV as itsofficial organ and appeared in 1985 under the presidency of Carlos Vera, with the nameof Dermatología (Chile). Juan Honeyman has been its editor in chief from the first issueto the present. His untiring and meticulous work, as well as that of the members of thesuccessive editorial committees (all of them outstanding members of the SCDV), particularlyPilar Valdés, Soledad Bertoló and Félix Fich, has enabled that journal to be publisheduninterruptedly up the present, with two issues a year up to 1993, later with threeissues a year and, since 1998, with four per year. It has been structured around originalpapers, clinical or experimental, bibliographical reviews, minicases and information ofinterest to the Society. With a certain frequency, this journal receives the input of foreignauthors and enjoys widespread distribution nationally and in neighboring countries.National scientific gatherings■ National scientific gatheringsDuring the SCDV’s first historical phase, its members met either once or twice a monthat scientific gatherings or assemblies for the discussion of cases and presentation of originalexperiences or reviews of issues, primarily at the St. Louis Hospital. Although the contributionof cases for these meetings came mostly from the physicians at the St. Louis andSt. Vincent de Paul hospitals, they also originated at other hospitals and even in theprovinces (among them, Valparaíso). In board records of 1945 it is found that in that yearthere were 16 gatherings with a total of 21 original papers and 56 presentations of clinicalcases, all of them published in the three issues of the already mentioned Boletín de la SociedadChilena de Dermatología y Sifilología. The most prolific author of reports presentedbefore the SCDV from it founding until 1980 was Hernán Hevia, with around 200 papers.In December 1968 a major meeting of the SCDV was held at the St. Louis Hospital,called Meeting of the Thirtieth Anniversary of the SCDV, lasting three days in morningand night hours, with the presentation of cases and original papers. This meetingbrought together all Chilean dermatologists and preceded other similar ones held by theSCDV under diverse names: Chilean Sessions of Dermatology, carried out in Santiago and183