Academy Members

• 1976. December: speciality in Internal Medicine, the Board of Examiners of the State of Croatia (Zagreb, December 2, 1976) Secretariat for Public Health and Social Welfare;
• 1985. Gained the title: cardiologist, from the Yugoslav Society of Cardiology held in Skopje, Macedonia;
• 1985. Gained the title: nephrologist, from the Yugoslav Society of Nephrology held in Ljubljana, Slovenia;
• 2005. Gained the title: Cardiologist, from the Ministery of Health of the Republic of Croatia;
• 2005. Gained the title: Nephrologist, from the Ministery of Health of the Republic of Croatia;
• 2005. Gained the title: Intensivist, from the Ministery of Health of the Republic of Croatia;
• 2005. Gained the title: Primarius, from the Ministery of Health of the Republic of Croatia.

Prof. Duraković has been engaged in scientific research work since 1968. From then onwards, including the present time, he has been investigating the epidemiology of chronic diseases, especially of the respiratory and cardiovascular systems diseases in the population of Croatia. He gave a particular contribution to the research of incidence of electrocardiogram changes in industrialized population, and he also investigated ECG changes in a randomly chosen population. Out this activity emerged numerous scientific articles, published in Croatia and in leading international journals, as is seen from his bibliography. He is the editor and author of 12 chapters of monographic textbooks. The book “Electrocardiogram”, published by the “Naprijed” publishing house in the summer of 1993, is intended for students of medicine and physicians The second, revised and enlarged edition, where he is also the editor and author of 12 chapters, is already in print (Grafos, Zagreb, 2003).
Besides clinical epidemiological investigations in the field of cardiovascular diseases, Prof. Duraković deals with, and gives original contributions to clinical entities, as is pre-excitation – epidemiological, clinical and genetic research, particularly with regard to the frequency of HLA system antigens,   what resulted in numerous works. One of them is published in the Bulletin of the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, and another one in the International Journal of Cardiology (1992). He investigates the hemodynamics of arterial hypertension and hypertensive disease of the heart, especially from the standpoint of echocardiography. The results are published in the journal Collegium Antropologicum and some others. Moreover, he, from various scientific standpoints, performs research in valvular heart disease, particularly of its hemodynamics, with special attention given to artificial heart valves. From the investigation of atrial fibrillation resulted a paper published in the Bulletin of the Zagreb School of Medicine. He investigates clinical aspects of bronchial asthma, with regard to the value of thalassotherapy in its treatment, and concludes that even in patients in whom asthma is in a reversible phase, the parameters measured by objective diagnostics do not improve, but only subjective discomforts are ameliorated. This resulted in several scientific papers (see bibliography).
Since 1971, his scientific-research opus represents a distinctive contribution to the investigation of several clinical phenomena, particularly of acute renal failure in various entities, like in cardiogenic shock and various types of intoxication. Here he gave original contribution to the understanding of clinical laboratory parameters in the acute renal failure, and established new foundations of border laboratory findings of functional oliguria and acute renal failure in the narrower sense. The originality of this achievement is discerned in the fact that the results of these investigations are published in the world’s leading scientific journals with a high degree of citations, as in, for example, Renal Failure.
A special field of his scientific interest is the clinics of intoxication, with particular attention paid to the application of extracorporeal methods for eliminating toxins in the most severe intoxications. From this emerged numerous articles, as for example the one published in the journal Artificial Organs. The article on the application of methods of extracorporeal hemodialysis and hemoperfusion in treating intoxication with Deherban (2.4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid) is published in the leading journal in the field: Archives of Toxicology. This activity has produced numerous published works, as well as the textbook: Z. Duraković et al., Clinical Toxicology, published by Grafos, Zagreb, in 2000, as the first textbook of the kind in our midst, while they are also scarce in international proportions. He is the leader of the lecture course Clinical Toxicology at the Zagreb School of Medicine, and it will be a facultative course within the study of medicine in English at the University of Zagreb. At present the textbook Z. Duraković, A.Kurjak, eds: Clinical toxicology is in the phase of preparation.
He is particularly engaged in the so-called bordering fields between cardiology and endocrinology, cardiology and toxicology, cardiology and nephrology, characteristics of electrocardiogram changes in patients with anorexia nervosa, comatose states and ECG changes, acute renal failures and its peculiarities in cardiogenic shock, all of them resulting in numerous papers, some of them published in leading journals in the field: Renal Failure, International Journal of Cardiology, and others, as seen in the enclosed bibliography.
His especially significant contribution is the scientific research in the field of medicine of the elderly, contained in investigating the characteristic of cardiovascular and renal diseases in older population. The results of the work through many years in this field are seen in many published works in Croatia, as a monography published in the Bulletin of the Academy, as well as in numerous international scientific journals, like Nephron, Gerontology, Zeitschrift für Alternsforschung. From this activity also emerged two books: Medicine of older age, published by Naprijed, Zagreb in 1990, and Use of medication in older age, Naprijed, Zagreb in 1991, both creating a unique comprehensive approach to the investigation and treatment of elderly patients, both in Croatia and throughout the world. Now the second edition of the book Z. Duraković et al. Medicine of older age is being prepared.
Up to now he has been a collaborator of many project teams, as for example: Chronic diseases in the population, Epidemiology of chronic noninfectious diseases. He was the main investigator of the project: Pre-excitation – epidemiological, clinical and genetic research, sponsored by the Croatian Ministry of Science (1986-1990). In the period 1990-1995 he led the project of the Ministry of Science: Aging and changes in the function of internal organs. The project resulted with several dozens of papers, as seen in the attached list. This activity has been continued by conducting another of the Ministry’s project: Changes of the internal organs caused by aging and rational therapy. Now he is the main investigator in the project: Aging, changes of organ functions, rational diagnostics and therapy.
Until now he has published a total number of 666 papers, the majority of them being original scientific articles, and many are published in the world’s leading scientific journals, as seen from the bibliography. He has written a series of texts in textbooks and handbooks in medicine, particularly in the field of internal medicine. He is the editor and co-editor in five textbooks of internal medicine: Z. Duraković (ed.) Medicine of older age, Naprijed, Zagreb, 1990; Z. Duraković (ed.) Use of medication in older age, Naprijed, Zagreb, 1991; Z. Duraković (ed.) Electrocardiogram, Naprijed, Zagreb, 1993; M. Mimica, Z. Duraković (eds.): Internal medicine in practice, 3rd, 4th and 5th edition, Školska knjiga, Zagreb, 1984, 1989 and 1990; Z. Duraković (ed.): Clinical Toxicology, Grafos, Zagreb, 2000.
He participated with almost 200 contributions at congresses in Croatia and abroad – the majority of contributions were oral presentations (see the list of congress contributions).
On the basis of his scientific achievements Prof. Duraković has been elected a member of many international scientific associations of high esteem, what is also seen in the fact that in the USA he was elected a  deputy governor in the American Biographical Association, a FIBA (the Fellow of the International Biographical Association in Cambridge, England) and an ABIRA (the American Biographical Institute Research Associate).
In April 1991, he was elected a FACP (the Fellow of the American College of Physicians) at the ceremony in New Orleans. He is the member of many other cited renowned international scientific organizations, as the New York Academy of Sciences since December 1981, the American Medical Association since 1980, the International Society of Cardiovascular Pharmacotherapy since 1987, the Worldwide Hungarian Medical Academy (Boston, USA), the American Academy of Antiaging Medicine. In December 1992 he had been elected an associate fellow of the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts in Zagreb, and re-elected in June 2002.
In 1996, he became a member of the American Academy of Antiaging Medicine, and in 2000, a member of the European College of Sport Science.

• 1969. Diploma, School of Public Health “Andrija Štampar”, Medical Faculty University of Zagreb (Hygiene and Labour – postgraduate study), Croatia;
• 1977. “Assistant Etranger”, “Edouard Herriot”, Department of Nephrology, University “Claude Bernard”, Medical Faculty of Lyon, France;
• 1980.Diploma in post – graduate studies in Cardiology, Medical Faculty University of  Zagreb,  Croatia;
• 1982. Plaque, for a work in Clinic Hospital Centar in Zagreb;
• 1984. Certificate in post – graduate training in echocardiography, Medical Faculty University of Zagreb, Croatia; The American Medical Association – Physician’s Recognition Award in continuing medical education;
• 1989. Plaque, for participation’s in scientific and professional meetings at the Association of internal medicine, Osijek, Slavonia, Croatia;
• 1989-1992. The American Medical Association – Physician’s Recognition Award in Continuing Medical Education;
• 1991. April Fellow of the American College of Physicians (FACP)- at the Convocation in New Orleans, USA;
• 1992. December: member of the Medical Department of the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts in Zagreb, Croatia;
• 1997. October: re-elected as a full professor of internal medicine, Medical Faculty University of Zagreb, Croatia;
• 2000: Plaque, Croatian Association of Physicians in Zagreb;
• 2001. Member of the Croatian Writers, Association in Zagreb;
• 2002. Re-elected as a member of The Medical Department of the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts in Zagreb;
• 2003. Member of the International Society of Poets, Owings Mills, Maryland, USA;
• 2006. Member of the Alma Mater Croatica
• 2008: Josip Juraj Strossmayer award for the best published book in the field of medicine: Gerijatrics-Medicine for the elderly (in croatian).

• 1973. Professional Examination Certificate (for the general practitioner), State Secretariat for Public Health and Social Welfare, Zagreb, Croatia
• 1976. Speciality in Internal Medicine, the Board of Examiners of the State of Croatia
• 2003. press: Court,s expert in internal medicine.

• Fluent in English
• Fluent in French
• Working knowledge in German
• Fluent in all South Slavic Languages

• Association Medical de Croatie (The World Medical Association, since 1968)
• The American Medical Association (since 1981)
• The New York Academy of Sciences (since 1981)
• The American College of Physicians (since l986)
• The International Society of Cardiovascular Pharmacotherapy (since 1987)
• The Mediterranean Cardiological Society (since l987)
• The International Leaders in Achievement, Cambridge, England (since l989)
• The International Who is Who of Intellectuals, Cambridge, England (since l989)
• The Life-Fellow, The International Leaders in Achievement, Cambridge, England (since l989)
• Distinguished Leadership Award, The American Biographical Institute, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA (since l990)
• Put on the Honour List in. The International Biographical Institute, Cambridge,England (since l990)
• The Life-Fellow. The American Biographical Institute, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA (since l990)
• Put on the Honour List in. The American Biographical Institute, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA (since l990)
• Medical Consultant in: The World Life Institute, Washington, D.C., USA (since l990)
• Deputy Governor, The American Biographical Institute, Raleigh,North Carolina, USA (since l990)
• The Fellow of the International Biographical Association (FIBA), Cambridge, England (since l99l)
• The Research Associate, The American Biographical Institute, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA (ABIRA, since 1991)
• The Fellow of the American College of Physicians (FACP, since 1991)
• Member of the American Academy of Anti-Ageing Medicine (since 1995)
• Member of the European College of Sport Science (since 2000.)

• The Smithsonian Institution (since 1981)

1. The Treatment of Coronary Heart Disease, Arterial Hypertension and Congestive Heart Failure, Medical Association of Bihać, Bosna and Hercegovina, 1978

1. The Treatment of Congestive Heart Failure, Department of Medicine, University Hospital Rebro, Croatia, 1979.
2. The Therapeutic Approach to the Patient with Congestive Heart Failure, Medical Association of Varaždin, Croatia, 1980.
3. The Treatment of Congestive Heart Failure, Medical Association of Croatia (general practitioners), Stubičke Toplice, Croatia, 1982.
4. The Myocardial Infarction – Diagnosis and Treatment, Medical Faculty University of Tuzla, Bosna and Hercegovina, 1983.
5. Arterial Hypertension in the Elderly, Diagnosis and Treatment, Zagreb, Medical Association of Croatia 1984.
6. The Treatment of Acute Heart Failure, Medical Faculty, University of Zagreb, Croatia, 1985.
7. The Diagnosis and Treatment of Cardiogenic Shock, Medical Faculty, University of Zagreb, 1986.
8. The Pulmonary Thromboembolism, Medical Faculty, University of Zagreb, 1987.
9. The New Intropic Agents in The Treatment of Congestive Heart Failure, Medical Faculty, University of Zagreb, Croatia, 1988.
10. The Pulmonary Embolism, University Hospital Rebro, Medical Faculty University of Zagreb, Croatia, 1989.
11. The Rational Drug Use in the Elderly, The Department for the Health Protection, Croatia, 1990.
12. Heart Diseases in the Elderly, The Department for the Health Protection, Croatia, 199l.
13. Drug use in the elderly, The Croatian Society of Internal Medicine, Opatija, 1998.
14. Poisoning in the elderly, The Department for the Health Protection, Zagreb, Croatia 2002.
    Clinical Toxicology, The Society of Occupational Health, Sport and Traffic Medicine,  Celje, Slovenia, October 2002.
15. The Risks of Physical Exercise, Faculty of Sport, Ljubljana, Slovenia, December 2002.
16. Sudden death due to physical exercise, Faculty of Sport, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, May 2005.

• Durakovic Z (University of Zagreb, Croatia): Religious Freedoms and the Current Muslim Question in Croatia, In: Churches and Freedom of Religion in Croatia, American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies, The 27-th National Convention of the AAASS, Washington, D.C., October 27,1995.