Augusto D. Litonjua MD, FPCP, FPSEM, FACE

Augusto D. Litonjua, MD, FPCP, FPSEM, FACE, will be presented with the International Clinician Award. Dr. Litonjua is an Emeritus Professor of the College of Medicine, University of the Philippines (UP). He retired as Professor and Chairman of Physiology and Clinical Professor of Medicine and Chief of Endocrinology, at the Department of Medicine in 1986. Dr. Litonjua now devotes his time to the clinical practice of endocrinology in three hospitals - Makati Medical Center, Asian Hospital and Medical Center, and Manila Doctors Hospital. He was Chairman of Medicine and Chief of Endocrinology in the first two Hospitals. He also attends to the running of the foundation he set up – Diabetes Center Philippines which conducts activities to create awareness for diabetes countrywide, trains diabetes educators from different hospitals in the country (now more than 60 such centers) and runs the camp for type 1 diabetics yearly.

Dr. Litonjua obtained his MD degree from the University of the Philippines and thereafter spent several years as a Clinical and Research Fellow at, the Department of Medicine (Thyroid Clinic under Dr. John B. Stanbury), and concurrently Research Fellow, at Harvard Medical School. He worked on proteolysis of thyroglobulin in “Mass Gen.” Dr. Litonjua later moved on to Boston City General Hospital under the tutelage of Dr. David Hurwitz and Dr. Norbert Freinkel being appointed as Assistant in Medicine, Harvard Medical School with concurrent appointments as Resident, Diabetes Clinic, Boston City Hospital, and Research Fellow, Thorndike Memorial Laboratories. He worked on the carbohydrate metabolism of the pituitary under different laboratory manipulations.

Dr. Litonjua returned to the Philippines in 1961 – then he found out about the dearth of knowledge about endocrinology and forthwith founded the Philippine Society of Endocrinology and Metabolism. To date, there are five training centers for fellows in endocrinology. He, later on, urged one of his former fellows, Dr. George Tan, to organize the Philippine Chapter of AACE – where he also serves as its President Emeritus and Adviser. It has been three years now that a yearly convention between AACE and the Philippine Chapter has been conducted. The Philippine Chapter remains a vibrant organization of young endocrinologists.