Albarran

ALBARRAN, Joachim (Joaquin Albarran, 1860-1912), graduated in 1879 from the medical faculty in Madrid, then moved to Paris, where he worked in histology under Ranvier, and in surgery under Le-Danty and Guyon. In 1906, after Guyon's retirement, A. was elected to his position as professor of urology and head of the department at the Necker Hospital in Paris. A. is one of the most brilliant French urologists. He was the first to point out the significance which the bacillus coli has in the pathology of the urinary tract, developed a methodology for studying the functional activity of the kidneys, proposing for this purpose the method of "experimental polyuria". Further worthy of mention are Albarran's monographs on the mechanism of the origin of hydronephrosis, on tumors of the kidneys and bladder, on tuberculosis of the kidneys. A.'s extensive operative experience is set forth in his brilliant textbook on operative surgery of the urinary tract, which has not lost its value even today, 18 years after its publication. Finally, mention should be made of A.'s technical invention, which also immortalized his name—the Albarran cystoscope (see Cystoscope), which made catheterization of the ureters a method of research accessible to any surgeon, and thereby greatly advanced kidney surgery.