Abstract

CUSUMANO, Ana María  and  DIEZ, Guillermo Rosa. Notes For The History Of Dialysis In The World And In Argentina. Second Part: The Beginnings Of Hemodialysis In Argentina. Rev. nefrol. dial. traspl. [online]. 2020, vol.40, n.3, pp.242-250. ISSN 2346-8548.

In Argentina, hemodialysis, as a treatment for acute chronic kidney disease, started almost simultaneously with renal transplantation and nephrology. In 1957, the first renal transplantation was performed; in 1958, the first hemodialysis treatment took place, and in 1960 the Argentine Society of Nephrology was created. At first, local manufacture of kidneys was important; for example, Dr. Alfonso Ruiz Guiñazú and other artisans made the one used for the first hemodialysis session, based on notes and photographs from abroad and on the Kiil model made by Dr. Manuel Calvo and later modified by Dr. Manuel Arce. Hemodialysis was first used in our country to treat acute kidney disease or to prepare the patient for transplantation. In 1964, the first chronic hemodialysis unit was established at Hospital Italiano de Buenos Aires (Italian Hospital of Buenos Aires), followed by another at the Servicio de Nefrología del Instituto de Cardiología de la Fundación Pombo (Pombo Foundation Cardiology Institute), led by Dr. Víctor Raúl Miatello. The spread of this practice to the whole country took place in the 80s; its development was fostered by the following: the universalization of health care coverage for chronic hemodialysis patients (August 1975); the National Law 21.541 on organ transplantation in 1977, and the inclusion of hemodialysis in private health insurance plans the same year. In 1983, Law 22.853 regulated the organization and running of dialysis institutions. The Unique Central Coordinator of Ablation and Implant (CUCAI in Spanish) was created under Law 21.541 of 1977; this institution, nowadays a national institute (INCUCAI), keeps an important record of chronic kidney disease and its replacement therapy.

Keywords : history of hemodialysis; history of nephrology; hemodialysis; renal dialysis; Argentina.