History of Latin American Dermatology

EVELYNE HALPERT, RAMÓN RUIZ MALDONADO, HÉCTOR CÁCERESDuring the Sixth Peruvian Congress of Dermatology, held in Lima in November 1996,it was decided to found the Latin American Society of Pediatric Dermatology (SLADP).Among its founders are outstanding specialists from diverse Latin American countriessuch as Ramón Ruiz Maldonado, of Mexico; Evelyne Halpert, of Colombia; Héctor Cáceresand Leonardo Sánchez, of Peru; Luis Alfredo González Aveledo, of Venezuela; MargaritaLarralde, of Argentina; Susana Giraldi, of Brazil, and Danny Suquilandia, of Ecuador.The first president of the society was Ramón Ruiz Maldonado; the legal standing of theSLADP was obtained in Mexico City through writ No. 64,954, Volume 1,059, of the year1996.The first congress of the Latin American Society of Pediatric Dermatology was held inthe city of Santa Fe de Bogotá, Colombia, in October 1997, organized by Evelyne Halpert.The first full meeting took place there and the first governing board was elected: President,Dr. Ramón Ruiz Maldonado; Vice-president, Dr. Evelyne Halpert; Secretary, Dr. CarolaDurán; Scientific Activities Secretary, Dr. Margarita Larralde; Trade ActivitiesSecretary, Dr. Héctor Cáceres Ríos; Press and Publicity Secretary, Dr. Luis AlfredoGonzález Aveledo.The second Latin American Congress of Pediatric Dermatology, organized by Luis AlfredoGonzález Aveledo, was held from June 14 through 17, 2000, in the city of Caracas.A new governing board was chosen there, headed by Dr. Evelyne Halpert.With a view to the Ninth World Congress of Pediatric Dermatology held in Cancún inthe month of October, 2001, the SLADP successfully organized the pre-congress coursecalled “From the Newborn to the Adolescent,” which enlisted the participation of manyof the continent’s current leaders in Pediatric Dermatology.The Third Latin American Congress of Pediatric Dermatology was held in Lima in May2003, under the presidency of Héctor Cáceres. The event, which encompassed a novel interactiveprogram, brought together the majority of specialists in Latin America andserved as the framework for the renewal of the governing board and election of Dr.Cáceres as president.The SLADP currently includes 15 countries with their respective permanent delegatesand it is affiliated to the International League of Dermatological Societies. Each grouphas organized diverse events, within its country, in the field of Pediatric Dermatology.In recent years the SLADP has grown significantly, currently constituting a solid institutionwith more than 200 members, devoted to promoting the development of Dermatologyin Latin America. In several countries of the region, books have been publishedon this field, and some Latin American pediatric dermatologists have participated in thepublication of major works in the United States and Europe. Promoted by Dr. HéctorCáceres and his working group, the Journal Revista de Dermatología Pediátrica Latinoamericanahas recently been created; it is published three times a year and has a freeon-line version at . ■September 2005■ ReferencesRuiz Maldonado R. PediatricDermatology:Accomplishments andchallenges for the 21stCentury. Arch Dermatol.2000;136:84.Ruiz Maldonado R. PediatricDermatology in Mexico. In:Oranje AP, Kunz B.Symposium on trainingdemands in PediatricDermatology 2001. PedDermatol. 2002;19:166-168.