Neonatology in Kinshasa yesterday, today and tomorrow

The idea of making pediatrics a daughter of internal medicine must be considered a thing of the past: the complexity of pediatrics lies in the fact that it deals with a growing human being. Each stage of this growth has its own pathology, the clinical and biological expressions of which can be very different in newborns and in children.

On the other hand, addressing a patient who does not express himself or who expresses himself with great difficulty leads the pediatrician to adopt more specific methods to understand the different problems posed during consultations.

Thus, the evolution of medicine inevitably leads to a multiplicity of specialties, each with its own research areas, working methods and specific practical applications.

The birth of perinatology and neonatology stems from this reality.

Definition of concepts

NEONATOLOGY is a branch of pediatrics that deals with premature, full-term, or post-mature newborns; the neonatal period being that which extends from 0 to 28 days (or 30 days)

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Authors:

Bruno-Paul TADY MUYALA BEMPUI

Prof. Dr. Bruno TADY MULAYA BEMPUL was born in Lusanga, Kwilu Province, on May 25, 1941. After his primary education in Kikwit and secondary education in Kinzambi, he studied medicine, surgery, and midwifery from 1962 to 1969 at Lovanium University in Kinshasa. He then specialized in pediatrics from 1969 to 1971 at the University of Kinshasa and from 1971 to 1973 at the University of Liège. He graduated with an Associate Degree in Higher Education in Medicine from the University of Kinshasa (and KUL) in 2022.

He served as Head of the Department of Pediatrics from 1977 to 1981 and from 2004 to 2010 and as Head of the Neonatology Service from 1974 to 2004 and from 2010 to 2016. He has participated in several international and national conferences and is a member of several learned societies including SOPECOD and APANEF. He was elevated to the rank of Knight of the National Order of the Leopard and also received the Bronze Medal of Civic Merit.