Kauko Antti Markku Kaste
Kauko Antti Markku Kaste was born on 23 September 1941 in Helsinki, Finland. He graduated from the University of Helsinki in medicine in 1968 and defended his doctoral thesis there in 1968.
Professor Markku Kaste started his research career as a first-year medical student at the Department of Neurosurgery of Helsinki University Central Hospital in the 1960s. After residency, he started as a neurologist in Helsinki University Central Hospital in 1976, and worked as head of the clinic from 1984–2005. In 1977, he was elected as associate professor, and in 1998, professor in neurology at the University of Helsinki. Since 2001, Professor Kaste was head of the Department of Neuroscience. After his retirement in 2006, as professor emeritus he is still an active member of the Clinical Stroke Research Group of the Department of Neurology of Helsinki University Central Hospital, and Department of Neuroscience of the University of Helsinki.
Professor Kaste’s academic career has also been connected with the University of Missouri, Columbia; he has delivered lectures in 17 leading universities of the world. He is one of the pioneers and leaders of clinical trials of thrombolysis in ischemic stroke. With his work he has laid the foundation to state-of-the-art stroke care and treatment not just in Finland, but in the whole world. However, Professor Kaste’s research interests are much wider. He has served on the steering committees of over 30 international randomised controlled trials and published more than 500 original papers with over 30,000 citations. He has published several neurology textbooks in Finland.
Professor Kaste has served as a member of academic promotions committees at many esteemed universities, and a member of major grants evaluation committees in various places all over the world. He has been chairman of numerous national or international conferences, a founding member of several stroke organisations, serving as the president or vice president in most of them. He has also worked for committees of national and international health management bodies.
Professor Kaste has received several awards, including the Johan Jakob Wepfer Award of the European Stroke Conference, the Karolinska Stroke Award of the international stroke conference of Karolinska Institute, awards of the Finnish Medical Association and the Finnish Medical Foundation, the Quality Award of the Finnish Medical Association, the William F. Feinberg Award of the American Stroke Association, the Award of the SalusAnsvar Foundation (Sweden) and the Award of the Nordic Stroke Society. He has been elected twice as the H. J. M. Barnett Lecturer by the McMaster University, Ontario, Canada; the first Professor Erkki Kivalo Lecturer and laureate of the Finnish Neurological Fund; the Snellman Lecturer of the Finnish Neurosurgical Society, and the Ludvig Puusepp Honorary Lecturer, invited by the Estonian L. Puusepp Society of Neurologists and Neurosurgeons.
Professor Kaste is a member or honorary member of several national and international professional associations and a member of the Finnish Academy of Science and Letters. The president of the Republic of Finland has awarded Professor Kaste with an official decoration of Finland.
Professor Kaste’s contact with the Neurology Clinic of the University of Tartu started in the course of research cooperation between the University of Tartu Chair of Neurology and Neurosurgery and the Neurology and Neurosurgery Clinics of the University of Helsinki in 1978–1991. Professor Kaste was the main coordinator and planner of joint research studies. The results were published in two collections of articles. Over that period, sixteen various meetings took place, incl. joint symposiums, seminars and visits to health facilities. Thanks to Professor Kaste, a number of doctors from UT Neurology Clinic had the possibility to work temporarily at Helsinki Neurology Clinic. Experience and a certain material support from Finland enabled the Neurology Clinic of the University of Tartu to keep pace with the developments in the world in both research and treatment. Collaboration with Finnish colleagues and relationships with Professor Kaste have laid the basis for ongoing cooperation in stroke research between the universities of Tartu and Helsinki. He has been an opponent of doctoral thesis defended in stroke studies at the University of Tartu and has delivered lectures in the University of Tartu and at international neurology conferences in Estonia.
In recognition of the outstanding achievements of Professor Emeritus Kauko Antti Markku Kaste in neurological research and development, and his long-term cooperation with researchers of the University of Tartu, the university is pleased to confer upon Kauko Antti Markku Kaste the degree of Honorary Doctor in Neurology of the University of Tartu.