Martin Kaltenbach

Martin Kaltenbach (1928-)
 
Professor Kaltenbach began his medical studies in Freiburg in 1948 and got he completed his habilitation in 1966 at the Johan Wolfgang Goethe-Universität in Frankfurt am Main where he became Professor in Cardiology in 1972. He was considered the master of diagnostic cardiology. He was one of two cardiologists who showed immediate interest in Andreas’ work.
 
Martin accepted Andreas Grüntzig’s proposal to work together, alternating procedures between Zurich and Frankfurt to prove that the procedure was reproducible and not solely operator-dependent. This collaboration involved the first 4 patients (the first and the third in Zurich; the second and the fourth in Frankfurt).  In Frankfurt, February 1978, he organized the 3rd International Congress on Coronary Artery Disease. Andreas Grüntzig had the opportunity to present his experience which, by then, included 11 dilatations in 8 patients. Martin conceived of the long-wire technique (300 cm) to avoid needing to re-cross the stenosis to exchange the balloon catheter. This method was later simplified by using an extension wire. Ultimately it was replaced by the monorail system.