Alessandro Laurinsich, the key player in the progress of paediatrics in the 20th century

Alessandro Laurinsich was one of the greatest Italian paediatricians of the 20(th) century. He was born in Monfalcone (it was the province of Trieste, but now it belongs to Gorizia) on 29(th) May 1899. After having completed secondary school in Trieste, he obtained a medical degree with honours in 1922 at the University of Naples and entered the paediatric clinic run by Rocco Jemma. Laurinsich was in charge of teaching at the clinic of infectious diseases from 1937 to 1940. During this period he focused on the study of tuberculosis in children, the first applications of pnemoencephalography in Italy, but also studied different malignant tumors of the kidney, neurological and psychological disorders in children, as well as educational problems. In 1940 he had a teaching post in the peadiatric clinic at the University of Siena and remained until 1945 when he moved to Parma. He worked with illegitimate children as well as evacuees. During the 1945-46 academic year, Alessandro Laurinsich was called to direct the paediatric clinic of Parma University where he created a series of paediatric centres and took many initiatives in the area. In 1961 he was offered the paediatric teaching post at the University of Milan, but inexplicably refused it. He was Dean of the faculty of Medicine from 1956 to 1968. He passed away on 2(nd) February 1969 in Parma.