АЛЕРГИСКИТЕ БОЛЕСТИ
ВО Р. МАКЕДОНИЈА

Professor Vladimir Cvetanov, M.D., Ph.D.

Professor Vladimir Cvetanov, M.D., Ph.D. was born in Skopje in 1935. He graduated in 1961 at the Medical Faculty in Skopje. From 1962 until 1965 he worked as a general practitioner at the Health Station of the Radusha pit. During 1965 to 1966 he attended post-graduate studies at "Andrija Stampar" Medical School in Zagreb, while in 1967 he passed his specialist exams of occupational health. In 1970 he completed his master studies becoming the first Master of Science at the Medical Faculty in Skopje. In
1979 he completed his Ph.D. thesis particularly focusing on hypersensitive pneumonitis. Results obtained and presented in this study are named as "Macedonian Study" by some Scandinavian authors. In 1984 was conferred the degree sub-specialist of allergology and clinical immunology and 1993 he added allergology and pulmology to the list of his specialties. Since 1993 he is a regular Full-time Professor at the Chair of Hygiene and Occupational Health at the Medical Faculty in Skopje. Simultaneously he was actively participating in the teaching process of subspecialty in allergology and pulmology. During one period of time, he was also lecturing at the post-graduate studies in Ljubljana and Sarajevo.
Professor Cvetanov is considered as a promoter of the Institute of Occupational Health back in 1972 and in 1986 of the Allergy Center within the same Institute. He was a Director of the Institute until his retirement in 2000.
He is the author of 207 scientific publications focused on the occupational pathology and allergology. When in the newly constructed building of the Institute of Occupational Health in 1977, all optimum conditions were provided; the Institute turned into a teaching basis of the Medical Faculty. Professor Cvetanov introduced the modern functional diagnostics of the respiratory system in 1967, while the experiences gained by the "small spirometry" were summarized and published in 1969. In 1970, in the publication "Allergies and Asthma", he published the application of skin tests with workplace allergens in detection of bronchial asthma in workers exposed to flour dust.
In 1976 he set the test for determination of precipitins with dual immune diffusion on gel-agar, indirect test on basophil deregulation, in 1978 the actual test for diagnosis of penicillin and drug hypersensitivity, while in 1980 he introduced LIF test in the diagnosis of occupational contact dermatitis. In 1991, at the Institute of Occupational Health an aeropalinological research survey started resulting in 1993 with its final results publication and knowledge of the first official facts about the city of Skopje. In 1994 at this Institute the use of rhinomanometry was induced as an additional and important test in diagnostics of allergic rhinitis. He received the first award for his poster presented at the Balkan Congress for Allergology held in Sofia (Bulgaria) on 28-30 May, 1998, entitled "The link between allergic manifestations of airways and actual microflora in Macedonia".
He is the editor and the first author of the published books: "Health Condition and Work Ability" in 1989; "Social Medicine-Health Promotion" in 1995; "Allergic Diseases-Management" in 1998; "Macedonian National Consensus for Allergic Rhinitis" in 1999, and the monographic publication "Specific immunotherapy" in 2001. He is one of the authors of the "Macedonian National Consensus for Diagnosis and Treatment of Asthma and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease" in 1999 and of the book "Clinical Allregology" published in Sofia in 2001.
Professor Cvetanov is the principal investigator and participant of two projects related to epidemiological allergic rhinitis (1993/1994), polycentric study for bronchial asthma (1995/96) and the Project No.400998 (1998-2003).
He was the President of the First Macedonian Immunology Congress in 1996 and of the Macedonian Society of Basic and Clinical Immunology and Allergology in the period between 1996 and 2000.
For his work he was awarded the highest certificate of gratitude by the Macedonian Medical Association in 1996.