Dr. Dimitrije Radulović, pioneer in the field of sports medicine: Life, work and achievements

Abstract

In the historiography of Serbian medicine, there is little data on the life and work of Dr. Dimitrije Radulović. He belonged to the first generation of Serbian doctors of the 19th century. He was born in 1814, in Bela Crkva, completed his studies of medicine in Pest, where he received his title Doctor of Medicine. After Pest, he went to Vienna, where he specialized in obstetrics. Among Serbs, he was the author of the first work in the field which we today call sports medicine. With this work, as well as with his later work, he established important foundations of sports medicine among the Serbian people. He was the first to write about the importance of physical exercise and the impact of different sports on the physical development of children, adolescents, and adults, thus contributing to the definition of optimal physical activity and hygienic-dietary regimes. His goal was to preserve and improve health, i.e. to improve the prevention and curative of various diseases and injuries, as well as the rehabilitation of patients.

U istoriografiji srpske medicine malobrojni su podaci o životu i radu dr Dimitrija Radulovića. Dr Radulović pripadao je prvoj generaciji Srba lekara devetnaestog veka. Rođen je 1814. godine u Beloj Crkvi, a studije medicine završio je u Pešti, u kojoj je stekao zvanje doktora medicine. Posle Pešte odlazi u Beč, gde se specijalizuje u oblasti porodiljstva. Među Srbima je bio autor prvog rada iz oblasti koju danas nazivamo sportskom medicinom. Tim radom, kao i svojim kasnijim delovanjem, postavio je temelje sportske medicine među Srbima. Prvi je pisao o važnosti telesnog vežbanja i uticaju različitih sportova na fizički razvoj dece, omladine i odraslih; na taj način dao je doprinos definisanju optimalnih fizičkih opterećenja i higijensko-dijetetskih režima. Cilj mu je bio da se očuva i unapredi zdravlje, odnosno da se poboljšaju prevencija i kurativa različitih oboljenja i povreda, ali i rehabilitacija pacijenata.