History of Latin American Dermatology

History of Dermatology in the Dominican RepublicPROJECT FOR SUBCUTANEOUS MYCOSIS INTERVENTIONBegun by Cosicou in the 1970s, and regularized by Rafael Isa at the end of the 80s, itwas brought to fruition in the year 2000, thanks to the Spanish Government, through theHumanism and Democracy Foundation which permits specialized treatment, intervention,and free supply of medication to patients with incapacitating subcutaneous mycosessuch as chromoblastomycosis, mycetoma, sporotrichosis, rhinoconidiobolomycosis, feohifomycosisand botriomycosis; the latter program has Dr. Martha Miniño as Head of Research,under the overall leadership of Dr. Isa 38, 39 .PRIMARY TREATMENT IN DERMATOLOGYThis program, a fundamental part of the IDCP, of the Program of Struggle against Leprosyand of the Project for the Control of Subcutaneous Mycosis, was conceived and developedat the beginning of the 1970s by Dr. Bogaert. The program offers medicaltreatment in the place of residency — marginal urban and rural areas — to people sufferingfrom skin ailments of easy treatment and without complications, referring themore serious cases to a second or third level of attention. It allows for periodic populationexaminations at a national level, the tracking of specific diseases and free deliveryof drugs manufactured by the IDCP, as well as a follow-up of these cases, and communityeducation 38, 40 . It is basically handled by non-medical personnel — medical auxiliariesin leprosy — together with specialized physicians and resident doctors in training.OTHER PROGRAMSThe IDCP-DHBD (Dr. Huberto Bogaert Díaz) has developed other programs such as thecontrol, prevention, and treatment of filariasis and cutaneous myasis, HIV vaccination,Intervention Program in ITS for HIV prevention and Gender and Health Program, financedand directed by diverse foreign institutions.Dermatological products manufactured in the Dominican RepublicInitially, dermatologists depended on foreign products, but when the IDD was born alaboratory was created for drugs used in formulas prepared according to physicians’ indications,which are the basis of the medicines employed in the Primary Treatment inDermatology program; they are sold at low prices to the patients who come to any of theIDCP units for treatment, and are distributed in a free manner in field work. Later on,with the advent of cosmiatrics, at the beginning of the 1980s, cosmetics and cosmeticcompounds and preparations were added. At present, the IDCP’s Production Laboratoryoffers numerous formulas that include masks, peelings, cabin material, antibiotics, cosmeticproducts and an entire arsenal in this field 41, 42 .In the 1980s, Dr. Ana Josefa Díaz and her husband, Ramón Marte, a chemical engineer,opened their ANACEL laboratory, which was one of the first to make cosmetic productsin our country. There are other laboratories, such as the one run by the HerreraDermatological Center, which also fill customized prescriptions and cosmoceutics.Ending the 20th century and entering the 21st■ Ending the 20th century and entering the 21stThe IDD, as pointed out above, changed its name in 1995 to the Dermatological andSkin Surgery Institute (IDCP); in 2002, after the death of Dr. Bogaert, it took the nameIDCP-Dr. Huberto Bogaert Diaz, or IDCP-DHBD 43 .Dermatology is increasingly centralized on the cosmetic and surgical aspects, which iswhy the residency in this specialized field has become one of the most sought after, and newspecialized subfields have appeared in the area, such as hair implants, laser-therapy, etc.385