Emerich Ullmann (1861-1937): not only a pioneer of kidney transplantation

Abstract

Emerich Ullmann (1861-1937) is the acknowledged pioneer of kidney transplantation. In 1902 he performed experiments with auto-, allo-, and xenotransplantations in dogs and sheep. In the same year he unsuccessfully tried to perform a human kidney grafting by transplanting a pig kidney to a woman with end-stage renal disease. Ullmann also conducted many experiments with other organ and tissue transplantations. In fact he should be regarded as the father of intestinal transplantation. Furthermore, he systematically investigated skin, testicles, ovary and bone transplantation. Moreover, he recorded clinical transplantations and in 1914 wrote a booklet (which in abridged form was published in English) summarizing knowledge on the organ and tissue transplantations of his time. Ullmann was an extremely innovative surgeon, he introduced various new surgical techniques. Last but not least, he was a broadly educated and literary man and an internationally renowned art expert and art collector.