TITLE: Uniformisation for non simple closed curves
QUESTION [7 upvotes]: Given a simple closed curve in the plane, there is a homeomorphism from the unit open disk to the interior of the curve. The homeomorphism can be taken conformal, this is the uniformisation theorem.
Is there a version of this result for closed curves that are not simple?
For example, given a $C^1$ closed curve $\gamma: S^1 \rightarrow {\bf R}^2$ with finitely many self-intersections, all of them transverse, is there a continuous map (maybe even conformal) from the unit open disk to the plane, such that the number of preimages of any point in ${\bf R}^2\backslash \gamma(S^1)$ is equal to the absolute value of the number of turns the curve makes around the point?
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REPLY [3 votes]: It sounds like, to some extent, what you are asking is whether an immersed closed curve in the plane can be extended to an immersion of a disk. This would yield the multiplicities that you seek; however, such an extension is not always possible. Necessary and sufficient conditions were first given in the thesis of Blank in 1967. For instance see this paper for more on this topic and references.