Szemészet, 2004 (141. évfolyam, 1-4. szám)

2004-06-01 / 2. szám

141. évfolyam (2004)

Already in the 1960s Radnót made efforts to found a new, state-of-the-art eye clinic. After some delay the government agreed to fund such a scheme. Construction work started in January 1968, on a site in Tömő Street. The building was completed in 1971. Radnót was thus able to give the Congress participants a tour of the new building. For her work in organising the Congress, and in recognition of her other achievements, she was elected President of the European Ophthalmology Society.

On 2 June 1972 the Society held another meeting. The journal “Szemészet” was designated as the organisation’s official journal, and it was decided that the editorial board should comprise the Directors of the various ophthalmic institutions, together with the General Secretary of the Society. Financial support was promised to “Szemészet” by the National Ophthalmological Institute, whose Director was Magda Radnót.

At the same meeting a decision was made that in the interests of ophthalmologists from the provinces, the time of the Friday scientific lectures should be brought forward to 4pm. The Schulek Memorial Medal, instituted by the National Ophthalmological Institute, was awarded for the first time. The recipient was Aladár Kettesy.

The most significant anniversary of 1973 is connected with the name of Ignác Hirschler, who had been born 150 years previously. For Hungarian ophthalmologists his work has special significance, since he was the founder, in 1864, of the journal “Szemészet”. The Society wished to found a memorial medal in his honour; but, as the costs of this exceeded their resources, the National Ophthalmological Institute agreed to provide the necessary funds.

In 1973 the Presidential Council of the Hungarian People’s Republic issued a decree that the Medical Further-Training Institute (OTKI) should be elevated to university status. The Institute after this had two faculties, with the addition of the OTKI Health-Education College. The Institute had been in operation since 1956, occupying part of the premises of the Szabolcs Street State Hospital. In 1961 the Minister of Health approved the establishment of 21 teaching departments, and appointed the Institute as the official agent for medical further-training.

An Executive meeting was held on 26 January 1973. The issue under discussion was the forthcoming Congress to be held in Sopron. There were 96 proposed lectures, but the allocated time for the Congress allowed the delivery of only 36. Therefore, preference was given to authors who were members of the Society. From each institution, only 3 or 4 lectures were accepted. Each speaker was allowed only one lecture, even as a co-author. The rejected authors were however given the right to attend the Congress. Participation in the Congress was not, in principle, conditional on being a member.

In this year, the Society had 496 members. Membership was granted to foreign doctors only on the basis of exceptional professional merit.

The outstanding event of 1973 was that Béla Alberth received an award from the German Ophthalmological Society, the only Hungarian to be so honoured. In this year Aladár Kettesy was 80 years old. The obituaries of the year were those of Imre Aszalós, Károly Korecz, and Imre Brandt.

The profession was kept informed about the technique of iris fluorescein angiography, by reports in the pages of “Szemészet”. This method was introduced in 1968 by Jensen and Lundback. The first Hungarian report was written by Bálint Kovács and István Takáts. The FLAG method was first published in 1964 by Maumenee, followed by reports by Katalin Járfás in 1968 and György Salacz in 1970. We may note with satisfaction that the new technique was taken up relatively rapidly here.

The introductory article of the 1974 issue of “Szemészet” was an editorial by Magda Radnót on cataract surgery. As has been mentioned previously, Barraquer reported on the technique of zonulolysis in 1958 in Brussels. In the 1st Department of Ophthalmology, animal experiments using the method were immediately begun. Cryoextraction, introduced by Krwawicz, also became widely used. Another new surgical technique, vitrectomy, which was first used by Kasner, was also quickly adopted in Hungary. Alberth reported his first pars plana vitrectomy cases in the pages of “Szemészet” in 1974.

In 1974 the first reports appeared on the phacoemulsification technique, introduced by Kelman. Looking back today, we can see that David Paton was a poor prophet when he wrote, in his editorial in “Investigative Ophthalmology”: “The future of the method is uncertain; it has numerous technical and cost disadvantages.” Despite this scepticism, Margit Varga of the 1st Department of Ophthalmology attended a “phaco course” at the Charing Cross Hospital in London in March 1973. The Clinic soon obtained the necessary equipment and began using the method. The FLAG method gained significance in diagnosis. In the field of tumour diagnosis the ophthalmology clinic in Pécs developed significant expertise; we may mention particularly the name of Bálint Kovács.

In this year the Hirschler Medal was awarded to Imre Bíró. The death occurred of Sándor Erőss.

In 1974 Magda Radnót was awarded the Chibret gold medal for her work on virus diseases of the eye. In 1975 she was honoured in a special issue of “Szemészet” with articles written by her students and colleagues. It was the 25th anniversary of her appointment as a professor. A special laudatory article was written by Béla Németh. In her working life Radnót published 280 articles and 9 books, and was the author of sections in 4 other books. She had membership in over 15 Hungarian and international professional societies, was on the editorial board of 2 Hungarian and 8 foreign journals, and received several Hungarian and foreign awards. The celebratory issue contained 21 articles, 6 of them by renowned foreign authors.

In 1975 a peripatetic meeting was held in Miskolc from 11-12 April. There were more than 70 lectures delivered, in 3 sessions. In the town of Szeged a children’s ophthalmology clinic had been established in 1964. Dóczy and colleagues reported on the progress achieved in the subsequent 10 years.

100 YEARS OF THE HUNGARIAN OPHTHALMOLOGICAL SOCIETY