[Physician founders of pediatric pulmonology in Serbia]

Initial steps in the field of pediatric pulmology in Serbia were made by the first Serbian pediatricians Dr. Platon Papakostopulo (1864-1915) and Dr. Milenko Materni (1875-1929). Later on these steps were continued by Prim Dr. Ljubomir Vulović (1896-1970). Until the discovery of anti-tuberculotics, lung tuberculosis was one of the most frequent and most serious diseases among the adults and the children's population. Prof. Dr. Smilja Kostić-Joksić (1895-1981) and Prof. Dr Borivoje Tasovac (1907-1996) played a prominent role in the application and efficiency evaluation of BCG vaccines amount the Children in Sebia, along with the other chest disease studies. Immediately after the Second World War, Special Children's Hospital for Tuberculosis was set up, in 1945 in Belgrade. The Hospital had been successfully managed for a long period of time by Prim. Bojana Roknić (1900-1976). From 1960 to 1970 the Hospital was transformed in Special Children's Hospital for Chese Disense and Tuberculosis and was the only hospital in Serbia dealing with diagonistics, therapy and rehabilitation of children's chest diseases, before all asthma, recidive bronchitis and other chronical and recidive bronchopulmonal diseases. From 1970 until now on the postgraduate course in Pulmonology on the Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, graduated over a hundred pediatricians.