History of Latin American Dermatology

History of Dermatology in UruguayWith extraordinary enthusiasm and devotion, Prof. de Anda has caused Uruguay’scurrent Dermatology to rise to international levels over the last twenty years. The samecan be said of her extraordinary collaborators, Drs. Macedo, Alé and Martínez, as wellas of the younger physicians, who have continuously presented innumerable articles andbooks, obtaining a large number of International Awards. It can be stated with certaintythat an infinite number of disciples have developed at Prof. de Anda’s side. It is the thirdglorious stage of Dermatology in Uruguay.Hospitals with Dermatology services■ Hospitals with Dermatology servicesHospitals dependent from the Ministry of Public Healththat have dermatological polyclinicsMACIEL HOSPITALThe Maciel Hospital has constituted a true glory of Uruguayan Medicine over thecourse of several centuries 1-16 . It operated, from its outset, as a Hospital of the Ministryof Public Health, but its activities were divided. There were the doctors of the MedicalSchool like José Brito Foresti, Bartolomé Vignale, José María Tiscornia Denis, HéctorSantomé, Antonio Blanco and Juan F. Tost (Figures 5, 6). We stress the figure of extraordinaryphysicians of the Medical School and of the Ministry ofPublic Health, like José May, Cándido Prego, Héctor Abreu, EustaquioMontero, Blanco, Esther Casella de Vilaboa and AnaCassinelli. Excellent physicians passed through those services, whichit is a duty to mention: Levy, Rampoldi, Dos Santos, Susana Dorce,Diab, Macedo, Bruno, Mocobocki and Conti.The Maciel is, since a few years ago, one of the main referral hospitalsfor all of Uruguay. Under the leadership of Dr. Ana Cassinelli andDiab it maintains a very free-flowing relationship with the Hemato-oncologyand Bone Marrow Transplant Patients Service, with the ChestSurgery Service and especially with the country’s only Center for GravitationalTherapy and with the Psycho-Social Medicine Unit (the onlyone in Public Health). Its physical facilities were expanded in 1999 andit enjoys all the modern elements for a better treatment for patients.Dr. Cassinelli’s latest and fundamental achievement was to includespecific medications for Dermatology in the hospital’s formulary whichcan only be prescribed by specialists, which allows a relatively stableamount of medication to be maintained. We very particularly wish tostress Cassinelli’s intense, selfless and extraordinary work, which hasplaced her service among the best in the Americas.FERMIN FERREIRA HOSPITALIt was created at the end of the nineteenth century for the interactionand treatment of patients with tuberculosis. Separated fromthe main nucleus of the buildings were two wards for leprosy patients; it was the originalleprosarium led for many years by Ernesto Stirling, a man who devoted his entire life,with affection, enthusiasm and devotion, to the care of his patients. When this hospitalwas closed down the patients came to be treated at a specially designed building on theoutskirts of Montevideo, the Hansenian Institute. It had four wards (two for women andtwo for men), six houses separated from the central nucleus for patients living as a couple,and central and administrative offices. This part was headed by Dr. Víctor Rosen andthe patients’ section by Drs. Moris Margounato and Nieves Varela. It had everythingFigure 5. In thecourtyard of the MacielHospital (1926). Leftto right: Demaestri(superintendent), B.Vignale and BritoForesti; at rear,Santomé, Klestorny,associate physiciansand nurse409