Gonzalo Aróstegui del Castillo

Physician. Outstanding member of the scientific movement in Cuba. Among his main decorations were the Medal of Public Education of Venezuela and the Red Cross of Brazil. He was one of the founders of the Superior Board of Health, member of the Economic Society of Friends of the Country and President of the League against Tuberculosis.

He was born in Puerto Príncipe (current city of Camagüey belonging to the province of the same name), Cuba

He completed his first studies in his native city, Puerto Príncipe, and at age 9 he entered the Institute of Secondary Education to pursue his High School diploma.

When the War of 1868 began and after the closure of said Institute, he joined the San Francisco School of the Piarist Fathers. He completed his High School diploma at the San Carlos Seminary, which he attended as an external student, graduating from the Institute of Havana.

He entered the University of Havana to study Medicine, but in the 4th year of the program he moved to Spain to continue his studies at the University of Madrid, finally completing them at the age of 22 years, on December 29, 1881. He later traveled to Paris, with the objective of deepening his knowledge at the Sorbonne University; for two years he completed internships at the Hôtel-Dieu Hospital and at different medical centers.

Later he moved to the United States, and in New York he came into contact with the systems and methods employed in that country, where he visited Jacobi, Holt, Kerley, and Caillé Children's Clinics, and others at the Post-Graduate as well as at the New York Policlinic. He subsequently returned to Madrid to begin his medical career in General Medicine and Psychiatry. It was only later that he began his dedication to Pediatrics.

Already in Cuba, around 1886, he was appointed Physician of the House of Charity, a position he held for 45 years, becoming the only physician and visiting doctor of that institution, which he combined with medical care to La Inmaculada School and the Asylum for Abandoned Elderly. He was considered a great clinician for his power of observation and his acumen for diagnosis.

He belonged to the Society of Clinical Studies, to which he presented his first communication on May 23, 1890, regarding the mental state of epileptics, work he maintained for years, as evidenced by his contribution consisting of a simple and original technique to resolve some cases of Foreign Bodies in the nasal cavities, which was presented on November 30, 1935.

On July 1, 1894 he entered as Academician of the Medical Section of the Royal Academy of Medical, Physical and Natural Sciences of Havana, after presenting his work titled: Conditions of Medical Production in Cuba. From December 17 of that same year until January 26, 1896, he was Director of the Annals of said corporation, as well as its Librarian between March 22, 1903 and April 28, 1905. On May 11, 1923 he was appointed Director of the section of Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary, a responsibility he held until his death.

In his capacity as Academician, he was designated to represent the institution on multiple occasions, such as: the burial of the remains of Federico Capdevila (1903); the National Commission of Intellectual Cooperation (1939); the Commission to Promote the Anti-Drug Fight (1935), among others. Similarly, he was tasked with delivering scientific speeches at special commemorations, such as the anniversary of the founding of the Royal Academy of Havana, on May 19, 1904, and the tribute session for Academician of Merit and Secretary of the Academy, Dr. Luis Montané, on the occasion of the first anniversary of his death, in 1938, to cite only two examples.

Due to his prestige and professional ability, he was part of the Competition Tribunals for candidates to Chairs at various educational institutions such as: the Normal School for Teachers of Havana (1917); the Normal School of Pinar del Río (1922); the Normal School of Matanzas (1923); the Normal School of Camagüey (1925); as well as the Schools of Medicine and Pharmacy (1924) and Letters and Philosophy (1930) of the University of Havana, among others. Similarly, and appointed by the Academy of Sciences of Havana, he was part of the Juries constituted in the years 1938 and 1939, to judge the works submitted for the National Prize for Literature, called by the Department of Culture of the Secretariat of Education.

Appointed Secretary of Public Education and Fine Arts, in 1919 he undertook the task of founding the Institutes of Camagüey and Matanzas, which earned him the recognition of "Favorite Son of Camagüey" and "Adopted Son" of Matanzas. In fulfillment of these duties, he attended in representation of the government the commemorative session for the 160th anniversary of the founding of the Academy of Sciences of Havana, on May 19, 1921.

He died in the City of Havana, Cuba, on November 18, 1940.

Among the multiple institutions and societies to which he belonged, he was one of the founders of the Superior Board of Health, by appointment of President Tomás Estrada Palma; founder of the Cuban Society of Pediatrics; member of the Economic Society of Friends of the Country; President of the League against Tuberculosis; Vocal of the Atheneum of Mexico; Vocal of the Institute of Social Assistance and Prevention; Vocal and President of the School Board of Havana and the Board of Education of Havana. He was, furthermore, Consul of Brazil for almost 30 years.

As President of the Association of American Writers and Artists, he cooperated in the publication of works such as: that of Gonzalo de Quesada; that of the eleven volumes of José Martí; that of Rafael Montoro in his honor; that of the first volume of verses by the poetess Emilia Bernal; that of the works of Vidal Morales; as well as in the revision of different articles by Enrique Piñeyro, published in El Fígaro. Upon his death, the Association decreed a period of mourning of 3 days at its headquarters and suspended all planned activities during that time.

He collaborated in political newspapers of Camagüey and Havana, such as La Luz, El Pueblo, El Camagüey, Nuevo Mundo, la revista cubana, El Triunfo, El País, the Diario de la Marina and El Mundo. He was also editor and contributor to the Magazine of Medical Sciences, Medical Progress, Vida Nueva and the Magazine of Medicine and Surgery of Havana. He also made translations of works from English, French, Italian and Portuguese.

Decorations

Among his main decorations were: the Medal of Public Education of Venezuela and the Red Cross of Brazil.

Active Bibliography

"The mental state of epileptics". In: Archive of the Society of Clinical Studies of Havana. Vol. 4. Havana, 1890, pp.86-90
"Considerations on cholera". In: Manual of sanitary practice. Havana, 1892
Aróstegui del Castillo, Gonzalo, Enrique B. Barnet, Juan Santos Fernández and others. "Motion to establish an Academy of the Language in this capital". In: Annals of the Academy of Medical, Physical and Natural Sciences of Havana. Vol. 38. Havana, 1902, pp. 162-163
"Puericulture (Speech delivered at the solemn session of the Academy on May 19, 1904)". In: Ibid. Vol. 41. Havana, 1904-1905, pp. 23-78
"Response speech to the admission as Academician of Number of Dr. Rafael Weiss and Verson On the dilation of the cervix by the Bossi Method". In: Ibid. Vol. 44. Havana, 1908, pp. 707-718
"Foreign bodies in the nasal cavities". In: Magazine of Medicine and Surgery of Havana. Vol. 40. Havana, 1935, pp. 609-611
"Luis Montané; academician and clinician". In: Annals of the Academy of Medical, Physical and Natural Sciences of Havana. Vol. 74. Havana, 1937, pp. 603-612.