Asim Kurjak

Background

Kurjak was born on September 13, 1942, in Kotor Varoš, Bosnia and Herzegovina, to Rasim and Dervisa Kurjak. He attended secondary medical school in Banja Luka before moving to Zagreb for medical education. His early life connected the medical institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina with the expanding academic and clinical system of postwar Yugoslavia.

His professional identity developed during a period when obstetrics and gynecology were being transformed by electronic monitoring, ultrasound imaging, and new approaches to fetal diagnosis. He later became associated with Zagreb's medical institutions and maintained academic and professional connections with Bosnia and Herzegovina throughout his career.

Education

Kurjak completed secondary medical education in Banja Luka and received his Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of Zagreb in 1966. The University of Zagreb, founded in 1669, was the principal institution of higher education in Croatia and its medical school formed physicians for the hospitals and research institutions of the former Yugoslavia.

He pursued postgraduate training in ultrasound diagnosis at the University of London in 1971–1972 and specialized in gynecology and obstetrics in Zagreb in 1974. The University of London provided a major setting for British medical research and clinical specialization during the period when diagnostic ultrasound was moving from experimental use toward routine obstetric practice.

Kurjak received his Doctor of Philosophy degree from the University of Belgrade in 1977 for research on combined ultrasonic and biochemical examination of fetal kidney function. The University of Belgrade, established in 1808 and reorganized as a university in 1905, was one of the leading academic institutions in Yugoslavia.

Career

Kurjak began his professional career in 1966 as director of the Health Care Center in Kotor Varoš. In 1968 he joined the University of Zagreb's obstetrics and gynecology service, where he combined clinical work with academic development. He also served as a research assistant and teacher at the University of Zagreb during the formative years of modern obstetric ultrasonography.

From 1979 he led the Ultrasonic Institute in Zagreb, a center associated with the World Health Organization's work in diagnostic ultrasound. He later became head of the obstetrics and gynecology department at Sveti Duh Hospital in Zagreb and directed the hospital's ultrasonic and perinatal programs. The department developed within the postwar expansion of specialist hospital medicine, while ultrasound became increasingly important for fetal growth assessment, placental circulation, and prenatal diagnosis.

Kurjak's research addressed prenatal diagnosis, fetal growth, three-dimensional and four-dimensional sonography, Doppler examination of fetoplacental and uterine circulation, early placentation, and tumor angiogenesis. He was associated with the development and international dissemination of transvaginal color Doppler and the concept of treating the fetus as a patient.

He served as head of the World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Ultrasound in Developing Countries and held leadership positions in the International Academy of Perinatal Medicine, the World Association of Perinatal Medicine, and the Ian Donald Inter-University School of Medical Ultrasound. He was a professor at the University of Zagreb and the University of Sarajevo, professor emeritus at the Sarajevo School of Science and Technology, and rector of the International University of Dubrovnik from 2013.

Kurjak wrote, co-wrote, or edited more than one hundred medical books and published more than one thousand scientific and professional texts according to later institutional biographies. His work helped connect clinical obstetrics, medical ultrasound, fetal medicine, and international physician education.

Achievements

• Kurjak was one of the pioneers of diagnostic ultrasound in gynecology and obstetrics in Croatia and the former Yugoslavia.

• He advanced prenatal diagnosis and fetal medicine through research on fetal growth, fetoplacental and uterine circulation, Doppler imaging, three-dimensional sonography, and early placentation.

• He helped establish and lead international educational programs in medical ultrasound through the Ian Donald Inter-University School of Medical Ultrasound.

• He authored, co-authored, or edited more than one hundred medical books and published more than one thousand scientific and professional texts according to later institutional biographies.

Works

More photos

• atlas

  • An Atlas of Three- and Four-Dimensional Sonography in Obstetrics and Gynecology

    (An illustrated reference presenting three-dimensional and...)

    2004
  • Atlas of Fetal Anomalies

    (An illustrated medical reference on fetal anomalies, docu...)

    1994

• medical book

  • The Fetus as a Patient

    (A work associated with Kurjak's development of fetal medi...)

    1991

  • Three-Dimensional Power Doppler in Obstetrics and Gynecology

    (A work on three-dimensional power Doppler imaging and its...)

    2000

  • Clinical Application of 3D Sonography

    (A specialist volume on the clinical use of three-dimensio...)

    2000

  • Ultrasound and the Ovary

    (A specialist volume on the use of ultrasound in ovarian a...)

    1994

  • Doppler Ultrasound in Gynecology

    (A reference work on Doppler techniques in gynecological i...)

    1998
  • Fetal Neurology

    (A specialist volume addressing neurological assessment an...)

    2009
  • The Fetus in Three Dimensions

    (A work devoted to three-dimensional visualization and ass...)

    2007
  • Controversies in Perinatal Medicine

    (A volume examining disputed and developing issues in peri...)

    2003

  • Ultrasound and the Endometrium

    (A specialist work addressing ultrasound examination of th...)

    1997

• textbook

  • Ultrasound in Clinical Medicine

    (Edited by Kurjak and contributors, this early volume help...)

    1977
  • Textbook of Perinatal Medicine

    (A comprehensive textbook on perinatal medicine that Kurja...)

    1998

  • Textbook of Transvaginal Sonography

    (A textbook focused on transvaginal sonography and its dia...)

    2005

Religion

Kurjak was associated with Islam and was buried according to Islamic rites at Mirogoj Cemetery in Zagreb. Islamic tradition, rooted in the Qur'an and the teachings of Muhammad, emphasizes monotheism, prayer, charity, moral accountability, and responsibility toward the wider community.

His later public life included support for Islamic educational, cultural, and charitable institutions in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. These activities placed his religious identity within the Bosniak and broader Muslim institutional environment of the western Balkans, while his professional career remained centered on medicine, science, and higher education.

Views

Kurjak's medical work was closely associated with the principle that the fetus should be considered a patient within prenatal medicine. His research and teaching emphasized the use of imaging and physiological assessment to understand fetal development and to improve the clinical care of pregnancy.

His public and professional activities also connected scientific expertise with education, institutional development, and charitable support for medical and academic communities. These themes reflected a view of medicine as both a scientific discipline and a social responsibility.

Membership

Kurjak participated in professional and scientific organizations devoted to medical education, ultrasound, obstetrics, gynecology, and perinatal medicine. His documented roles included service in the World Health Organization's ultrasound programs, leadership in European and international perinatal organizations, and membership or fellowship in several academies of medicine and science.

These organizations provided forums for clinical standards, scientific exchange, specialist training, and international cooperation. His association with the Ian Donald School and related perinatal bodies was particularly connected with the international teaching of diagnostic ultrasound in obstetrics and gynecology.

• Board director for postgraduate studies in ultrasound and clinical medicine; chairman of the first World Congress on Ultrasound in Developing Countries.

  World Health Organization , Switzerland

  1985

• President.

  European Association of Perinatal Medicine , Belgium

  1990

• President and later life-long president.

  International Academy of Perinatal Medicine

  2026

• President.

  World Association of Perinatal Medicine

  2026

• President.

  Academy of Medical Sciences of Croatia , Croatia

  2026

• Fellow or member.

  Italian Academy of Science and Art of Reggio Puglia , Italy

• President of the International Academy of Sciences and Arts in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

  Academy of Sciences and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina , Bosnia and Herzegovina

  2026

• Member.

  International Institute of Malformations

Personality

Quotes from others about the person

• Academic and professional tributes described Kurjak as an internationally recognized physician, scientist, university professor, and pioneer of ultrasound diagnostics in gynecology, obstetrics, and perinatal medicine.

Connections

Kurjak was the son of Rasim Kurjak and Dervisa Memic Kurjak. He married Biserka Funduk and had two sons, Alan and Igor.

His professional connections extended across universities, hospitals, international academies, and medical organizations in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the United Kingdom, and other countries. Through the Ian Donald School and international perinatal organizations, he worked with physicians and teachers involved in the development of fetal medicine and medical ultrasonography.

Father:

Rasim Kurjak

Mother:

Dervisa Memic Kurjak

Spouse:

Biserka Funduk

child:

Alan Kurjak

child:

Igor Kurjak

References

• Hrvatska enciklopedija: Asim Kurjak Reference biography documenting Kurjak's birth, medical education, clinical career, research fields, and leadership in Croatian and international perinatal medicine.
  2013
• Hrvatski biografski leksikon: Asim Kurjak Biographical reference documenting Kurjak's education, hospital career, scientific fields, awards, and extensive book bibliography.
• Asim Kurjak: Professor Kurjak Institutional biography describing Kurjak's academic appointments, international organizations, books, publications, honorary doctorates, and awards.
• International Academy of Perinatal Medicine: Council Organizational reference documenting Kurjak's leadership role in the International Academy of Perinatal Medicine.
• Hrvatska radiotelevizija: Preminuo akademik Asim Kurjak Obituary documenting Kurjak's death on October 23, 2026, his medical career, scientific work, awards, and public controversies.
  2026