The Academia Española de Dermatología y Venereología (AEDV) was founded in 1909 under the name Sociedad Española de Dermatología y Sifiliografía. It was promoted by Dr Juan de Azúa y Suárez, the first chair of this discipline in Madrid.

The first meeting took place on Thursday, May 6, 1909, at the headquarters of the Colegio de Médicos de Madrid,1 then located at Calle Mayor, number 1. With the communications presented at that session, publication began of the Society's journal, Actas Dermo-Sifiliográficas, which has continued to appear up to the present day.

The absence of a historical archive at the AEDV and the lack of references in this regard in Actas Dermo-Sifiliográficas contributed to uncertainty as to whether there had been regulations governing the Society in its early days and who its founding members were.2

Thus, the earliest known statutes and regulations dated from 1925, the year in which a refounding took place and the name was changed to Academia Española de Dermatología y Sifiliografía for legal reasons.3 As for the founding members, the first list was published in Actas Dermo-Sifiliográficas, referring to February 1910.4

Today we can affirm that the Sociedad Española de Dermatología y Sifiliografía had very well-structured regulations from the beginning of its activity, since we have located a printed copy preserved in the Biblioteca Nacional de España5 (Fig. 1). It is a 14-page booklet that we summarize here, given its crucial relevance to the history of Spanish dermatology in general and to the AEDV and Actas Dermo-Sifiliográficas in particular.

Fig. 1.

Cover of the 1909 AEDV regulations.

Article 1 establishes that the Society's purpose is “the practical study, in its various clinical, therapeutic, anatomical, microscopic, and bacteriological modalities, of matters relating to diseases of the skin, venereal diseases, and syphilitic diseases.” Furthermore, it states that “subjects and doctrinal questions not linked to observed facts or personal investigations by the person presenting them are strictly excluded from the work of this Corporation.”

Article 2 determines that there will be honorary, full, and corresponding members, as well as the procedures for their election. The number of full members is limited to a maximum of 30, unlike what was decided in later regulations, in which the number became unlimited.

This same article reports the decision to exclude “all physicians, whatever their scientific value, who in their professional life have not adhered to the practices considered correct by medical opinion.”

Article 3 determines that the Society will not hold solemn inaugural sessions, in keeping with the spirit of sobriety that Azúa wished to characterize it. The sessions are set at 10 per year, on the first Thursday of each month, from exactly 6–8 in the evening, except in August and September. These sessions were to take place at the headquarters of the Colegio de Médicos. At the end of the January session, an annual general meeting was to be held, at which the financial situation would be reported.

Article 4 also imposes a practical and sober tone on the sessions, limiting presentations to a maximum of 15minutes, comments by attendees to 5minutes, and the overall response by the presenter to 10minutes.

Article 5 is of great interest for the history of Spanish dermatology, as it establishes the creation of Actas Dermo-Sifiliográficas, which it defines as the “journal of the Association.” It was to be published every 2 months and to include the minutes of the sessions, which were taken down stenographically. The “Secretary General” would be responsible for adapting the transcripts to the established space limits and for editing the journal.

Moreover, the article details the possibility of publication at the authors’ expense when the established length limits were to be exceeded, just as they would also have to assume the printing costs of original articles. It also deals with the distribution of the journal and the creation of a Society library.

Article 6 is devoted to the dues of full and corresponding members. Full members had to pay 5 pesetas per month, and national corresponding members 25 pesetas per year. These dues entitled them to receive Actas Dermo-Sifiliográficas and to publish their work in it, following the rules established in these same regulations.

The positions of the Board of Directors are defined in Article 7, consisting of a President, a Vice President, a Secretary General-Accountant, 2 Recording Secretaries for foreign affairs, and a Librarian-Treasurer. The duration of all these positions was 4 years, with the possibility of reelection.

Article 8 again insists on the austerity that should govern the Society: “The economic life of the Society shall be reduced to the greatest simplicity, with no secretarial expenses other than postage and paper, and shall unfailingly cover payment for the premises, lighting, stenographer, and printing of the minutes.”

Article 9 defines the income, which would consist of members’ dues, income from the minutes, and donations. If these were insufficient to cover expenses during the first 4 years of the Society's existence, the deficit resulting from payment for the premises, lighting, stenographer, and printer would be borne by the President. In other words, Azúa was prepared to finance the Society personally.

The 10th and final article states that, if the Society's budget should have a surplus, it would first be invested in acquiring a projection device.

The regulations are dated Madrid, May 10, 1909, 4 days after the Society's first session, and are signed by the Secretary General, José Sánchez-Covisa, with the approval of the President, Juan de Azúa.

The regulations are followed by 2 pages of “Notes” with details on the preparation of the agenda for the sessions, its dissemination through professional newspapers and posting at the Faculty of Medicine, the Hospital de San Juan de Dios, and the Colegio de Médicos, as well as the address of the editorial and administrative offices of the journal and the possibility for authors to draft the texts of their own communications.

Next comes 1 page with the composition of the Board of Governors and 2 pages with the list of Full Members. The Board consisted of Mr. Manuel Sanz Bombín, Honorary President; Mr. Juan de Azúa y Suárez, Acting President; Mr. Antonio Pardo Regidor, Vice President; Mr. José Sánchez-Covisa, Secretary General-Accountant; Mr. Augusto Vergely and Mr. Jaime Nonell, Recording Secretaries for foreign affairs; and Mr. Miguel Serrano, Librarian-Treasurer.

The list of Full Members includes 29 of the maximum of 30 established in Article 2:

• 1.

  Mr. Juan de Azúa y Suárez.

• 2.

  Mr. Manuel Sanz Bombín.

• 3.

  Mr. Antonio Pardo Regidor.

• 4.

  Mr. Fernando Castelo.

• 5.

  Mr. Jesús Lozano.

• 6.

  Mr. Miguel Serrano.

• 7.

  Mr. José Sánchez-Covisa.

• 8.

  Mr. José Quintana.

• 9.

  Mr. Jaime Nonell.

• 10.

  Mr. Enrique Álvarez Sáinz de Aja.

• 11.

  Mr. Antonio Hernández.

• 12.

  Mr. Luis Augusto Vergely.

• 13.

  Mr. Sixto Martín Miguel.

• 14.

  Mr. Enrique García del Mazo.

• 15.

  Mr. Marcial Taboada.

• 16.

  Mr. Antonio Zofío.

• 17.

  Mr. Teodoro Gaztelu.

• 18.

  Mr. Felipe Farinós.

• 19.

  Mr. Jerónimo Pérez Ortiz.

• 20.

  Mr. José Rodríguez Terrazas.

• 21.

  Mr. Eusebio Oyarzábal.

• 22.

  Mr. Leonardo Pérez del Hierro.

• 23.

  Mr. Clementino Basail.

• 24.

  Mr. José Olavide.

• 25.

  Mr. Manuel Manzaneque.

• 26.

  Mr. José Spreáfico.

• 27.

  Mr. Manuel González Tánago.

• 28.

  Mr. Vicente Jimeno.

• 29.

  Mr. Sebastián Moré.

The publication of these regulations adds 3 founding members who do not appear in the February 1910 list: Mr. Jerónimo Pérez Ortiz, Mr. José Rodríguez Terrazas, and Mr. Leonardo Pérez del Hierro.4

Both the AEDV and Actas Dermo-Sifiliográficas are centenary institutions, with continuous activity since 1909. Their history and documentation are a valuable heritage that must be preserved. An example is their first statutes, which were key to the beginning of their journey and to providing an impetus that continues to this day.