Julio Meneghello Rivera (1911 – 15 August 2009) was a

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

an physician, scientist, academic, and researcher, considered the initiator of social pediatrics in his country.

Biography

Julio Meneghello obtained his professional degree in 1936 at the

University of Chile The University of Chile () is a public university, public research university in Santiago, Chile. It was founded on November 19, 1842, and inaugurated on September 17, 1843.

. Between 1941 and 1943 he did postgraduate studies at the American universities

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

Johns Hopkins Johns Hopkins (May 19, 1795 – December 24, 1873) was an American merchant, investor, and philanthropist. Born on a plantation, he left his home to start a career at the age of 17, and settled in Baltimore, Maryland, where he remained for mos ...

, and

Cornell Cornell University is a private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson White in 1865. Since ...

. In 1950 he assisted in the establishment of the Pediatric Research Laboratory, which gave rise in 1977 to the . He is considered the father of modern

pediatrics Pediatrics (American English) also spelled paediatrics (British English), is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, Adolescence, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, pediatrics covers many o ...

in the country, among other things, because he was the first in the world – around 1955 – to put into practice the systematized use of oral serums to treat acute

diarrhea Diarrhea (American English), also spelled diarrhoea or diarrhœa (British English), is the condition of having at least three loose, liquid, or watery bowel movements in a day. It often lasts for a few days and can result in dehydration d ...

with great

dehydration In physiology, dehydration is a lack of total body water that disrupts metabolic processes. It occurs when free water loss exceeds intake, often resulting from excessive sweating, health conditions, or inadequate consumption of water. Mild deh ...

in malnourished children. In addition, he and his team found the ideal composition of these hydrating serums, which (with certain modifications) would be recommended by entities such as the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a list of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations which coordinates responses to international public health issues and emergencies. It is headquartered in Gen ...

and

UNICEF UNICEF ( ), originally the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, officially United Nations Children's Fund since 1953, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Development a ...

for the management of these minors. The importance of this scientific and pedagogical work was recognized by the medical journal ''

The Lancet ''The Lancet'' is a weekly peer-reviewed general medical journal, founded in England in 1823. It is one of the world's highest-impact academic journals and also one of the oldest medical journals still in publication. The journal publishes ...

'' in 1978, as one of the most important medical advances of the 20th century for developing countries. In 1995 Meneghello received the Rector Juvenal Hernández Jaque Medal, awarded by the University of Chile to those members of their community who, in the exercise of their professions, have rendered distinguished services. In 1996 he received Chile's National Prize for Applied Sciences and Technologies for his contribution to eradicating malnutrition and reducing infant mortality in the country. In 2002 he was awarded his country's National Prize for Medicine. Julio Meneghello died of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

on 15 August 2009, at age 98.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meneghello, Julio 1911 births 2009 deaths Academic staff of the University of Chile Chilean people of Italian descent Chilean pediatricians Cornell University alumni Deaths from pneumonia in Chile Harvard University alumni Johns Hopkins University alumni Medical educators University of Chile alumni 20th-century Chilean physicians 21st-century Chilean physicians