Robert Kienböck (11 January 1871 – 8 September 1953) was an Austrian

radiologist Radiology ( ) is the medical specialty that uses medical imaging to diagnose diseases and guide treatment within the bodies of humans and other animals. It began with radiography (which is why its name has a root referring to radiation), but tod ...

who was a native of

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. In 1895 he earned his medical doctorate at the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...

, and spent the next year abroad (

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

). He returned to Vienna as an assistant to Leopold von Schrötter (1837–1908), a

laryngologist The larynx (), commonly called the voice box, is an organ in the top of the neck involved in breathing, producing sound and protecting the trachea against food aspiration. The opening of larynx into pharynx known as the laryngeal inlet is about 4 ...

, and began working in the new science of

radiology Radiology ( ) is the medical specialty that uses medical imaging to diagnose diseases and guide treatment within the bodies of humans and other animals. It began with radiography (which is why its name has a root referring to radiation), but tod ...

. Several years later, he became head of the radiological department at

Vienna General Hospital The Vienna General Hospital (), usually abbreviated to AKH, is the general hospital in Vienna, Austria. It is also the city's university hospital, and the site of the Medical University of Vienna. It is Europe's fifth largest hospital, b ...

. In 1926 he became an associate professor of radiology. In June 1923, along with Guido Holzknecht (1872-1931), he was co-founder of the ''Wiener Gesellschaft für Röntgenkunde'' (Vienna Radiology Society). He was elected president of the ''Österreichische Gesellschaft für Röntgenkunde'' (Austrian Radiology Society) in 1934 and honorary president of that body after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. With Holzknecht, he published the two-part ''Röntgenologie. Eine Revision ihrer technischen Einrichtungen und praktische Methoden'' ( Roentgenology. A review of its technical facilities and practical methods). Kienböck was a pioneer in the use of

x-ray An X-ray (also known in many languages as Röntgen radiation) is a form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength shorter than those of ultraviolet rays and longer than those of gamma rays. Roughly, X-rays have a wavelength ran ...

technology for medical diagnosis and therapy. He specialized in research of

skeletal A skeleton is the structural frame that supports the body of most animals. There are several types of skeletons, including the exoskeleton, which is a rigid outer shell that holds up an organism's shape; the endoskeleton, a rigid internal fram ...

diseases and its treatment through radiology. In 1910 he described a disorder which consisted of breakdown of the

lunate bone The lunate bone (semilunar bone) is a carpal bone in the human hand. It is distinguished by its deep concavity and crescentic outline. It is situated in the center of the proximal row carpal bones, which lie between the ulna and radius and the h ...

in the wrist. He called the disorder "lunatomalacia", which is now known as Kienböck's disease. Kienböck published his findings in a treatise titled ''Über traumatische Malazie des Mondbeins und ihre Folgezustände'' (Traumatic malacia of the lunate and its consequences).Kienböck's disease
@

Who Named It ''Whonamedit?'' is an online English-language dictionary of medical eponyms and the people associated with their identification. Though it is a dictionary, many eponyms and persons are presented in extensive articles with comprehensive bibliograp ...

References

* Wagner, Jared P. and Kevin C. Chung. "A Historical Report on Robert Kienböck (1871-1953) and Kienböck's Disease." ''Journal of Hand Surgery'' 30A, no. 6 (November 2005): 1117–1121.
''Robert Kienböck''
@

Austrian radiologists 1871 births 1953 deaths Physicians from Vienna Physicians from Austria-Hungary Radiologists {{austria-med-bio-stub