become the largest, most powerful, and most useful orthopedic organization in the world.
In addition to these activities, Dr. Ryerson was a member of the International Society of Ortho- pedic Surgery and Traumatology, the Institute of Medicine of Chicago, and the American College of Surgeons. He served on the board of governors of the American College of Surgeons in 1947. He wrote many articles on orthopedic subjects and is, perhaps, best remembered for the Ryerson triple arthrodesis of the ankle. For several years he edited the Yearbook of Orthopedic Surgery and Traumatology.
Perhaps Dr. Ryerson’s professional life is best epitomized by what a former associate said of him: “He was a good teacher and surgeon; he always gave his best to his patients.”
Many of the younger men in Chicago came to know Dr. Ryerson in his later life through his attendance at local meetings, including those of the Chicago Committee on Trauma, where his discussions of papers were always to the point.
He was meticulous in his choice of words and insisted that others be equally meticulous. At St.
Luke’s Hospital, his operating room was always open to the younger men, and he would take time to explain the operative procedure. His technique in the operating room was the best. Although his primary interest was orthopedics, he would often observe other types of surgery being done. Fre- quently he came into my operating room to observe the procedure and give helpful sugges- tions. Unbeknown to him, he was frequently referred to by the younger men as Uncle Ned, which indeed was a term of endearment.
In 1947, he retired from private practice to live in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, with his very gra- cious wife, Adelaide, whom he married in 1904.
During the summer months, however, he still spent considerable time in and around Chicago.
Dr. Ryerson belonged to several clubs in Chicago and was an ardent and enthusiastic golfer. In his later years his interest changed from golf to daily visits to the docks, seeing the many ships in port and conversing with their captains.
At the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons in January 1961, a lapel pin was given to each of the past presidents of the Academy. It was my privilege and pleasure after this meeting to present this pin to Dr. Ryerson at his home in Fort Lauderdale.
Although he had some difficulty walking at that time, the spark in his eyes and kindly smile were
still present as he spoke of his appreciation of this token and remembrance by the Academy.
Dr. Ryerson died on February 3, 1961, at his home in Fort Lauderdale. His teachings and con- tributions to orthopedic surgery in Chicago and throughout the world will be long remembered.
294
Who’s Who in Orthopedics
Amulya Kumar SAHA
1913–
Amulya Kumar Saha was born in 1913 in Pabna in undivided India (now in Bangladesh). After graduating with degrees in both science and medi- cine from Calcutta University, where he received his surgical training under Professor L.M.
Banerjee, one of the outstanding surgeons of India in his time, he volunteered in the British Indian Army during World War II. He saw service in Burma and in the Middle East, where he became a surgical specialist and quickly rose to the rank of major. After demobilization, he traveled to the United Kingdom for additional training and study in surgery. He received the titles of FRCS (Eng), FRCS (Edin), and MChOrth (L’Pool) in 1948. He became interested in the shoulder mechanism while assisting Professor S.K. Basu at the Indian Museum in 1940. He delivered his first disserta- tion to the Liverpool orthopedic group in 1948.
Thereafter, the shoulder was one of his abiding interests.
On his return to India, Saha was first appointed
to the post of reader in surgery in Gwalior
Medical College. Subsequently, he joined the
Nilratan Sircar Medical College and the Univer- sity of Calcutta as associate professor of surgery, where he served from 1949 to 1955. From 1955 to 1963, he served as professor director in the Department of Surgery at the same institution and eventually became an honorary consultant orthopedic surgeon, a position he held from 1964 to 1972. In 1972, he was made emeritus profes- sor of orthopedic surgery. During Professor Saha’s time, orthopedic surgery was just becom- ing recognized as a specialty in India. Through the force of circumstances, he was appointed to a post in general surgery, although he was pri- marily interested in orthopedics. In fact, he was largely instrumental in popularizing orthopedics in Calcutta and training a number of younger surgeons in this field. They have maintained his high standards at Nilratan Sircar Medical College Hospital in Calcutta.
Professor Saha’s major contribution to ortho- pedic research and clinical orthopedic practice is in relation to the shoulder joint. While at Nilratan Sircar Medical College, he conducted extensive studies on the functional anatomy of the shoulder joint from anatomic, anthropologic, morphologic, radiologic, and electromyographic, as well as mathematic, points of views. As a result of these studies, he published his work on the zero posi- tion of the glenohumeral joint in 1950. In 1957, he was invited by the Royal College of Surgeons of England to deliver a Hunterian Lecture, “Zero- position of the Glenohumeral Joint: its Recogni- tion and Clinical Importance.” At about this time (1954), he became interested in the study of recur- rent dislocation of the shoulder joint and in reha- bilitating patients with paralysis of the shoulder following poliomyelitis.
He was convinced that dynamic stability was essential during various stages of elevation of the shoulder joint with versatile ranges of move- ments. He postulated that there are three main factors that maintain the dynamic stability of the fully developed shoulder joint: (1) normal retrotilt of glenoid articular surface in relation to the axis of the scapula; (2) the optimum retrotorsion of the humeral head in relation to the shaft; (3) balanced power of the horizontal steerers. Based on these principles, he evolved his operations for treatment of recurrent dislocation of the shoulder joint, which he considered to be primarily due to lack of dynamic stability during abduction. In some cases of recurrent anterior dislocation of the shoulder joint, there was no history of injury, and in many cases no Bankart lesion was demonstra-
ble. He was of the opinion that the Bankart lesion possibly was not the cause of recurrent anterior dislocation and occurred from lack of the stabi- lizing factors and superimposed trauma. In other words, some shoulder joints are more prone than others to undergo spontaneous dislocation, with or without minimal stress. Based on these con- siderations, he evolved his operations: (1) glenoid neck osteotomy to increase the retrotilt of the glenoid (modified Meyer Burgdorff), when it was demonstrated radiologically that the glenoid retrotilt was diminished or there was actual antetilt; (2) decreasing the retrotorsion of the humeral head by rotation osteotomy of the upper shaft of the humerus, when there was excessive retrotorsion demonstrable by special radiograms;
(3) augmenting the power of the horizontal steer- ers by transferring the tendon of the latissimus dorsi to the posterior aspect of the humeral neck.
He published several monographs, one of which was translated into German in 1978.
For the post-poliomyelitis paralyzed and flail shoulder, Professor Saha developed his tech- niques of multiple muscle transfers based on his concept of dynamic stability of the shoulder; this work was described in a supplement to Acta Orthopedica Scandinavica in 1967. This concept and its application have been included in many books on the shoulder, including Campbell’s Operative Orthopedics.
In addition to his great interest in surgery of the paralyzed shoulder, he also devoted his efforts to the rehabilitation of the paralyzed hip following poliomyelitis, using various original muscle transfer techniques to increase muscle power around the hip. He published a number of articles on this subject in Indian journals.
Professor Saha was also interested in partial and total shoulder arthroplasty and was working in this field at the time of his retirement. He designed a removable metal prosthesis based on his concept of dynamic stability of the shoulder, which uses available muscles to provide motor power to the shoulder. Lately, this prosthesis has been modified by one of his colleagues to include a high-density polyethylene cover.
In addition to the subjects already mentioned, Professor Saha was interested in various other aspects of orthopedics and was first and foremost an excellent clinician and versatile surgeon. He is held in high esteem by his colleagues and stu- dents. He is a past president of the Indian Ortho- pedic Association, an honor that he very much cherished. He was also the recipient of DSc
295Who’s Who in Orthopedics
(Anatomy) and Coats Gold Medal of the Calcutta University for original research. Professor Saha was an active member of the Société Interna- tionale de Chirurgie Orthopédique et de Trauma- tologie and attended many of its meetings, presenting papers on the shoulder.
He was invited by several universities in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Japan to deliver lectures about his work on the shoulder joint.
position in an American medical school. In addi- tion to his practice, Sayre had the energy to serve as the health officer for the City of New York from 1860 to 1866. In this capacity, he made great improvements in public health, particularly because he recognized the contagious nature of cholera. His activity in the public sphere reached its apex in 1880 when he became president of the American Medical Association, the only orthope- dic surgeon to be so honored. During his tenure in office, he gave strong support for the estab- lishment of the Journal of the American Medical Association, which began publishing in 1882.
Sayre was a prolific author, and his books were widely read throughout the world in translations.
His greatest contributions to orthopedic surgery were in the treatment of tuberculosis of the spine and other joints. Such a dynamic personality could not avoid controversy and indeed he did not try to avoid it. It is interesting to note that his three sons all became orthopedic surgeons.
296
