Nil Filatov

Who was Nil Filatov?

Nil Fyodorovich Filatov was a physician who is considered the founder of Russian paediatrics. His nephew Vladimir Filatov was a prominent ophthalmologist.

Having graduated from the Moscow University, he practised as a country doctor in his native region. In 1872-1874, Filatov took additional training in Vienna, Berlin, Heidelberg, and Prague. In 1876, he upheld a thesis on bronchitis and pneumonia, and obtained a doctor degree.

Nil Filatov is most famous for describing infectious mononucleosis in 1887 and Dukes' disease in 1885; he was also one of the first to observe Koplik's spots. In cooperation with Georgy Gabrichevsky he introduced serumal treatment of diphtheria in 1894.

He created a number of handbooks on paediatrics, which were not only popular in Russia, but also translated into German, French, Italian, Czech and Hungarian. In 1892, Filatov established the Society of Paediatricians in Moscow.

The oldest children's hospitals in Moscow, and in Russia are named after him.