An interview with Antônio Carlos de Oliveira Ruellas

André WEISSHEIMER, Márlio Vinícius de OLIVEIRA, Matheus Melo PITHON, Luiz Gonzaga GANDINI JÚNIOR

With joy and trust, I have accepted the invitation to coordinate this interview with professor Dr. Antônio Carlos de Oliveira Ruellas, one of the most renowned men in Brazilian Orthodontics. For those who do not know him, he is from the town of Areado (near the cities of Alfenas and Poços de Caldas) in the state of Minas Gerais. In 1989, he got a degree in Dentistry (School of Pharmacy and Dentistry — Alfenas — EFOA/Unifal) and two years later, under the advice of professor Walter Alves Araújo, he began his career as a professor of Dentistry at the University of Alfenas/Unifenas while he was still in the undergraduate course. Later on, professor Ruellas taught Physics at a university entrance exam preparation course in Alfenas. Subsequently, he went for the masters and doctorate degree in Orthodontics at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) where he stood out as one of the best students and, later on, one of the professors of that renowned institution — a position he has skillfully occupied until these days. Professor Ruellas has recently inished his post-doc in Engineering of Metal and Materials at the Military Institute of Engineering (IME). He has published more than 190 articles in national and international periodicals, in addition to two books (his most recent books is entitled “Biomechanics applied to the clinical practice”, a masterpiece of the orthodontic literature), among others. Professor Ruellas stands out from the crowd not only for his titles, academic production and attributes, but even more for his simplicity, humbleness and generosity towards those around him. He has always supported his students to go beyond him by saying “My students should be better than I am, and their students should be better than what they are…”. At work, he passes on everything he knows, and when he does not know something, he admits it, always seeking more and more knowledge. I consider professor Antônio Carlos as my orthodontic father — I dived into Orthodontics because of his advice and his lessons. I had the privilege of being his student during the undergraduate, postgraduate, masters and doctorate courses. And that makes me very proud. I do not know anyone else who has had the privilege of being his student during all learning stages. I would like to end this preface by inviting everyone to read and enjoy this interview that will certainly expand our orthodontic knowledge. Matheus Melo Pithon

How to cite: Ruellas ACO. Interview. Dental Press J Orthod. 2013 Nov-Dec;18(6):15-25.

Friday, December 27, 2024 13:19