P1838THE CONTRIBUTION OF MICROSCOPE IN THE KNOWLEDGE OF KIDNEY DISEASES AS DESCRIBED BY GIULIO BIZZOZERO

• Published in: Nephrology, dialysis, transplantation dialysis, transplantation, 2020-06, Vol.35 (Supplement_3)
• Main Authors: Bellinghieri, Guido, Gembillo, Guido, Savica, Vincenzo, Satta, Ersilia, Salvo, Antonino, Santoro, Domenico
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0931-0509; 1460-2385
• DOI: 10.1093/ndt/gfaa144.P1838

Abstract Background and Aims Giulio Bizzozero (20 March 1846 - 8 April 1901) was an eminent Italian scientist, the father of the modern microscopy. In 1879 he published his masterpiece “Manuale di Microscopia Clinica “(Handbook of Clinical Microscopy). Here he underlined how the microscopic examination of the urine gave to the physicians of the time indicative criteria of alteration of the kidney, often essential for diagnosis. Method Bizzozero operates in his book a detailed analysis of the methods of time, laying the foundations of microscopy and diagnosis of renal diseases. He proposed a classification of pathological urine and gave large space to the role of the presence of red blood as a great diagnostic sign in urinary sediment (Figure 1 and Figure 2). The author emphasized the use of microscopy against the obsoleted vision of old academics and promulgated the experimental methods in opposition to the vitalistic philosophy of the time. Bizzozero underlined the idea of “teamwork” and the strong connection with his close collaborators, he says that on a laboratory “a mind should give the idea and the direction of work while other minds join together dealing with particular executions”. Results Bizzozero's revolutionary vision of medicine had the purpose to allow every scientist to reach new discoveries in their field, previously being the privilege of an elite, making him a model both as a doctor as a humanist. In one of his memorable speeches he declared: “We need to undress the science of the cloak of mystery and authority: the professor in the school must not offer a series of dogmas supported by the prestige of his name, he must instead expose science in the real state in which it is found, with its doubts and its unresolved mysteries”. Conclusion This Bizzozero’s masterpiece definitely represents a milestone of scientific literature, a witness of the radical evolution of modern medicine and experimental research. Figure 1 Figure 2