About Me
I was born in Paris and raised in Germany. I am interested in art, in music, and in science, in particular, in the face. I remember, when I was a child in school, I asked my biology teacher: When our nose is formed, how do the cells know when to stop at the tip of the nose?
Fortunately, I became an anatomist and an orthodontist, and I could focus my work and my research on the human face.
Research
From 1992 to 2024 I have been the director of the Department of Craniofacial Developmental Biology at Charité – University Medicine Berlin.
Our main research area is the development of the face and its structural biological peculiarities.
Patient Care in Orthodontics and Craniofacial Orthopaedics
As I am also a specialist in orthodontics and craniofacial orthopaedics, I see my patients once a week at ADENTICS – Die Kieferorthopäden in Berlin-Mitte.
Photo: Thomas Ecke, BerlinProfessional Associations
It has always been a pleasure and an honor to serve as the scientific director of several congress series and bring together colleagues to share their knowledge for the sake of our patients.
It is a special honor for me to act as the president of the EurAsian Association of Orthodontists and of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Aligner-Orthodontie.
Musicians’ Medicine
Musicians need special medical care. With my background in orthodontics and craniofacial orthopaedics I am a member of the Berlin Center for Musicians’ Medicine (BCMM) at Charité – University Medicine Berlin.
Music
Music has been with me all my life. I play the cello in the Berliner Ärzteorchester e. V. (Berlin Doctors Orchestra), where I have been a board member since 2020, and I am a member of the World Doctors Orchestra (WDO). I have also devoted myself to composing music.
Art
If I had more time, I would like to paint more. But at least I was able to draw the illustrations myself for some of my books and publications.
Here is a collection of non-research-related artworks of mine.
Publications
Next to research articles in scientific journals, I was able to summarize my knowledge in textbooks. Furthermore, I wrote a book about my horse Poseidon.
Voluntary Work
For ten years (2009–2019), I was the president of the Written Art Foundation. Its successor organisation is now called Stiftung Handschrift.
