
The history of the Gynecological Clinic of the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery of São Paulo began on October 31, 1917, when the Congregation of the Faculty appointed Arnaldo Vieira de Carvalho to Lente Professor of Gynecology. The Gynecological Clinic was the 4th Chair of the 5th year, the last of the Curricular Course.
The new Professor, Head of the 1st Women's Infirmary of Santa Casa, where the new Clinic was installed, gave his inaugural lecture in the Santa Casa's noble hall, on March 4, 1918. He was also a politician and a world citizen with a wide culture. . In the exercise of his position as Professor, which he combined with the Director of the Institution, Arnaldo revealed his gifts as a great surgeon. His assistants were José Ayres Netto, Egidio de Carvalho and Nazareno Orsesi. Manoel Feliciano de Carvalho was the anesthesiologist of the surgical team, having been the first to use chloroform in operations. "If it is an exaggeration to say that Arnaldo Vieira de Carvalho was the creator of operative gynecology among us, it is undeniable that he was the popularizer of major gynecological interventions here", in the words of Moraes Barros. Arnaldo was the speaker of the 1st class of doctoral students at the Faculty, in 1918. It was a well-deserved award for the person who had dedicated a large part of his life to the Institution. Here is an excerpt from the speech of the illustrious paraninfo. "Guided by interest or vocation, you will leave carrying, more than we do, the serious task of raising high a new fame - the reputation of the Faculty of which you are the first heralds throughout the world". Arnaldo Vieira de Carvalho's terms as Director and Professor of Gynecology ended prematurely. His death took place on June 5, 1920, a few months after, on January 25 of the same year, he presided over the laying of the foundation stone of the current Faculty building, in the Araçá neighborhood._cc781905-5cde-3194-bb3b -136bad5cf58d_
After the death of the first Professor of the Gynecological Clinic, its 1st assistant, Doctor José Ayres Netto, took over the regency of the Chair. At that time, a movement was outlined at the Faculty aimed at not holding the contest to fill the vacancy in question, handing over the position to the regent in office. The matter provoked intense debate, including the participation of the press, which, in unison, expressed itself in favor of opening the contest. When the Faculty Congregation met, this collegiate body decided to carry it out, marking the beginning of the contest for February 21, 1921. José Ayres Netto, Luciano Gualberto, Nicolau de Moraes Barros , Nelson Libero and Passos Cunha signed up as candidates. The Examining Committee was appointed by the Congregation, made up of Professors AC Camargo, Alves de Lima, Oliveira Fausto and Silvio Maia, with Professor Edmundo Xavier, Director of the Faculty of Medicine, as President. The course of the tests was a memorable event in the life of the Faculty, mainly due to the number and high quality of those who applied for the position. The press gave great publicity to the event, publishing the credentials, photographs of the candidates and following the day-to-day progress of the tests. The contest consisted of a written test, a judgment of the curriculum, a didactic test and a practical test, the latter divided into a clinical examination of a patient and an operation on a cadaver. Nicolau de Moraes Barros was the winner, by indication of the Examining Board, whose choice was endorsed by the Congregation, in a session of March 23, 1921. The new Professor was not able to start the Gynecology Course, right at the beginning of the school year, as he had intended. , as there were obstacles of a bureaucratic nature, which greatly contradicted him, related to the installation of his Service, in the Hospital da Santa Casa, in the words of the Professor himself. Thus, the didactic activities were only started on July 17, 1921, when Moraes Barros delivered his magnificent inaugural lecture. It was Moares Barros who structured the teaching of Gynecology at the Faculty, basing it on specific programs. Nicolau de Moraes Barros withdrew from university work on August 18, 1944, due to compulsory retirement, and died in March 1959, at the age of 83. He was succeeded in the Chair by Professor José Bonifácio Medina , after being approved in a competition held in May 1945. During his tenure, in 1948, the Gynecological Clinic of the Faculty of Medicine left the Santa Casa Hospital and moved to the 10th floor. of the new Hospital das Clínicas building, where it remains until today. From then on, Gynecology began to be taught in the 5th year of the course and the program developed, which remained in force until 1962, was extensive, formulated for Chair and Professorship competitions.
Before Professor Medina's retirement, there was a reform of the university career, through the Law of Directives and Bases, which extinguished the Chairs and established the Departments, integrated by Disciplines, as minimum units of structure of the Faculties. At the time, the Chair of Obstetrics Clinic was vacant, due to the death of Professor Raul Briquet, on September 4, 1953, the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology was created, and the Congregation assigned Professor José Medina to the Direction of the Department, integrated by the Disciplines of Obstetrics and Gynecology. With the formation of the Department, the Head of Gynecology Clinic was exercised by Professor José Galucci and that of Obstetric Clinic by Professor J. Onofre de Araújo who, after his retirement, was replaced by Professor Domingos Andreucci, both leading figures of our Obstetrics and Gynecology . Professor J. Onofre de Araújo had for many years the Prol. José Aristodemo Pinotti as a direct disciple to whom he taught the art of midwifery. In 1965, the Medical Residency of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology was created at the Hospital das Clínicas. Appointed by Professor José Medina, the organizer and first Head of the Gynecological Clinic's Residency was Professor Carlos Alberto Salvatore . Prior to Medina's retirement, the Department's two Disciplines had once again been separated. José Medina left the Chair, due to retirement on April 20, 1970 and died on May 31, 1993, at the age of 93. With Medina's retirement, José Galucci, Adjunct Professor of the Department, assumed the Regency of the Discipline. His period of Regency was interrupted six months later, due to illness. The position of Titular Professor of Gynecology was assumed, by competition, by Carlos Alberto Salvatore , who continued the work of his Master, Professor José Medina and expanded the Service, creating new sectors of activities and restructuring others. During the management of Professor Carlos Alberto Salvatore , two competitions for titles were held for Assistant Professor, in accordance with the Faculty's Rules of Procedure. The first, in 1973, with the appointment of Professor Álvaro da Cunha Bastos, and the second, in 1981, with the appointment of Professor Aurélio Zecchi de Souza. Both Assistants exercised the Head of Clinic, after the mentioned competitions. There were also free teaching competitions, qualifying doctors who already had a doctorate. Professor Carlos Alberto Salvatore ended his university activity, due to retirement, on April 19, 1987. Associate Professor Aurélio Zecchi de Souza assumed the Regency of the Discipline, until the competition to fill the vacancy of Full Professor. The contest started on June 18, 1988, at the end of the tests, Professor José Aristodemo Pinotti was approved with distinction and praise. He was born in the city of São Paulo, on December 20, 1934, and graduated from the Faculty of Medicine of the University of São Paulo, in 1958. He returned home through a competitive examination after having completed his academic career with doctoral, professor and Titular Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Unicamp, where he was Director of the Faculty of Medical Sciences and Dean. Upon assuming the position of Head Professor of the Discipline of Gynecology, Professor Pinotti reformulated the administrative structure of the Clinic, implementing new services and acquiring equipment necessary for teaching, assistance and research. Another important aspect of Professor Pinotti's administration was the launch of a new journal, in collaboration with the Disciplina de Obstetrícia, since the last periodical publication had been discontinued. Thus, the "Revista de Ginecologia & Obstetrícia" was launched in April 1990. The scientific production of the Discipline of Gynecology, under the direction of Professor José Aristodemo Pinotti, grew significantly, resulting in the publication of articles in national and particularly foreign ones, with an impact on the international literature.