Dr. Kenneth Charles Appell, a surgeon who revolutionized kidney dialysis treatment, passed away on June 14 at the age of 100 at his home in Red Hook.
The child of German-Czech immigrant parents, Appell grew up in Astoria, Queens, and served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. After the war, he attended Manhattan College and the Georgetown University School of Medicine.
In 1963, Appell was a surgeon in the renal care unit of the Bronx Veterans Administration Hospital when he developed the arteriovenous or AV fistula procedure, which made access to blood vessels safer and easier during the dialysis process. The Vascular Access Society of the United States honored Appell in 2007, noting that his breakthrough “immeasurably benefited countless patients undergoing end-stage renal disease.”
Appell relocated with his family to Red Hook in 1967 and became a surgeon at Northern Dutchess Hospital; he also maintained a private practice in Rhinebeck.
