Gathorne Robert Girdlestone

Professor Gathorne Robert Girdlestone (1881–1950), often known as GRG, was a pioneering orthopaedic surgeon, the founder of the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre, and the first Nuffield Professor of orthopaedic surgery at the University of Oxford.[1]

Gathorne Robert Girdlestone
Portrait drawing of Gathorne Robert Girdlestone by William Rothenstein (1872–1945); sanguine and white chalk, c. 1899-1938, collection of the National Portrait Gallery, London
Born1881
Died1950
NationalityBritish
Scientific career
Fieldsorthopaedic surgery
InstitutionsNuffield Orthopaedic Centre

Life

Gathorne Robert Girdlestone was born in 1881, the son of Robert Baker Girdlestone, Canon of Christ Church, Oxford[2] and first Principal of Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. He went to Charterhouse and then to New College, Oxford.

Girdlestone died in 1950.

Work

In 1943 Girdlestone described an Orthopedic procedure which is intended to rescue hip joints in humans[3] and more commonly these days, in animals.

The procedure, a Femoral head ostectomy – also known as a Femoral head and neck ostectomy – is a salvage procedure, mostly used in cases of severe damage through Hip dysplasia or Arthritis in which the Head (and, sometimes, the Neck) of the Femur are removed, allowing fibrous tissue to grow in place, creating effectively, a pseudo-joint.

In honor of Professor Girdlestone, this operation is referred to as a Girdlestone procedure.

Recognition

There are two roads near the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre in Oxford names after Gathorne Girdlestone: Gathorne Road and Girdlestone Road. It is difficult to know whether he would have been pleased with this honour, as he had refused to allow the Wingfield Hospital to bear his name.[4] The Girdlestone Memorial Library[5] (one of the Bodleian Libraries) at the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre is named after him.

Publications

The book publications of Gathorne Robert Girdlestone include:

  • The Diagnosis & Treatment of Tuberculosis of the Hip. London: Humphrey Milford, 1925.
  • The Care and Cure of Crippled Children. The scheme of the Central Committee for the Care of Cripples. Bristol: J. Wright & Sons, 1925.
  • Tuberculosis of bone and joint. London: Milford, 1940.
  • A Regional Orthopaedic Service, and its association with the accident services of the region. Oxford: Hall the Printer, [1949]

His published articles include:

References
  1. Gathorne Robert Girdlestone (1881–1950): Pioneering orthopaedic surgeon. Oxfordshire Blue Plaques Board. Accessed July 2013.
  2. H.J.S. (1951). In Memoriam: Gathorne Robert Girdlestone (1881–1950). Journal of Bone Joint Surgery (Br) February 1951 33-B (1): 130–133.
  3. Gathorne Robert Girdlestone (1943). Acute pyogenic arthritis of the hip: an operation giving free access and effective drainage. Lancet. 241: 419–421.
  4. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 27 November 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. "Bodleian Health Care Libraries | Home". www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk. Retrieved 14 February 2018.

Further reading
  • Josep Trueta (1971). Gathorne Robert Girdlestone. London: for the Girdlestone Orthopaedic Society; Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199200337.
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