Rudolf Karwetzky

Rudolf Karwetzky

Rudolf Karwetzky (born April 8, 1923 in Vidnava , Czechoslovakia , † November 6, 1999 in Münster ) was a German dentist and a pioneer in the field of orthodontics .

Life

After receiving the German Abitur in the summer of 1941, Rudolf Karwetzky received the draft order for the Wehrmacht and served on various fronts until the end of the war. Returning home from the war, Rudolf Karwetzky studied dentistry in Munich, where he also received his doctorate in 1953. He completed his orthodontic training in Munich and later in Kiel, where he worked as an assistant at the local dental clinic until he moved to Münster.

In 1957, when he joined the orthodontic department of the ZMK Clinic as a senior assistant, the dentist was a member of the teaching staff at the Westphalian Wilhelms University for 30 years . In 1963 he qualified as a professor, was appointed adjunct professor in 1968, scientific department head and professor in 1970 and then full professor and director of the University Clinic for Dentistry, Oral and Maxillofacial Medicine in 1975. Karwetzky played a key role in the planning of the new dental clinic in Münster, which opened in 1979.

In 1980, as the annual president of the German Orthodontic Society, Karwetzky directed and organized one of the most successful congresses in Münster and repeatedly presented his research results at international events in the years that followed. His scientific work is internationally recognized. Karwetzky has written around 100 publications and book chapters.

Karwetzky was married and has a son.

U-bracket activator

U-bracket activator according to Karwetzky

Karwetzky became well known beyond the borders of Münster through the development of orthodontic aids and devices with which positional anomalies of the teeth and positional misalignments of the jaws can be normalized and possible growth failures can be prevented.

The "U-bracket activator" according to Karwetzky is of decisive importance - a functional orthodontic device which, depending on the type (1–3), enables the lower jaw to be aligned in the desired position.

Publications (selection)

• Karwetzky, R. (1963), Histological, Radiological and Clinical Examinations in the Masticatory Organ to Determine Reaction Degrees for Orthodontics . In: Das Deutsche Zahnärzteblatt (June)