Who’s Who in Orthopedics
President of the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma in 1962.
As the Director of the Trauma Division of the American College of Surgeons, he had a signifi- cant role in trauma education and the develop- ment of programs for emergency trauma care throughout the United States.
124
Oscar P. HAMPTON, Jr.
1905–1977
Oscar Hampton was a true son of the Old South.
This was most apparent in his accent and his courtly manner. Born and educated in Nashville, Tennessee, he graduated from Vanderbilt Univer- sity and the University of Tennessee School of Medicine. After graduating in 1928, he had sur- gical training at the St. Louis County Hospital and the Memphis General Hospital. He began his sur- gical practice in St. Louis in 1932. His interest in surgery of the extremities led him to limit his practice to orthopedics.
Hampton rose to prominence during World War II as the orthopedic consultant for the North African and Mediterranean Theaters. The experi- ence gained in this role led to the publication of two books, “Wounds of the Extremities in Military Surgery,” and “Orthopedic Surgery in the Mediterranean Theater.” He remained active in the reserve, becoming a consultant to the Surgeon General of the army. He retired with the rank of Brigadier General.
After the war, Hampton returned to St. Louis and resumed his practice. He became a member of the clinical faculty of Washington University.
He was an early enthusiast for open reduction and internal fixation of fractures. In 1959 he was coauthor with William T. Fitts, Jr., of Philadel- phia, of a book, “Open Reductions of Common Fractures.”
He was Chairman of the Committee on Trauma of the American College of Surgeons and was
Paul Randall HARRINGTON
1911–1980
Paul Randall Harrington was educated in the
Kansas City school system and graduated in
1930, having been named one of the State of
Kansas’ 15 most outstanding high school gradu-
ates. He was also an outstanding basketball player
in high school. He had not planned to go to
college, but was offered a basketball scholarship
to the University of Kansas. During his 4 years at
the university he played on their basketball team,
which won the Big Eight championship 3 years
in a row. He was elected captain of the team in
his senior year. Although his initial plan was to
major in physical education, one of his track
coaches recognized his potential and urged him to
study medicine. He attended the University of
Kansas School of Medicine and graduated in
1939, having worked his way through school by
playing semiprofessional basketball. In 1936, he
tried out for the national Olympic team and won
the championship of his region in the javelin
throw, but he was unable to attend the finals in Chicago.
Dr. Harrington did his internship and first year of surgical residency at Roper Hospital, Charleston, South Carolina, after which he returned to St. Luke’s Hospital in Kansas City, where he completed his residency in orthopedic surgery in 1942. He joined the United States Army Medical Corps and was assigned to the 77th Evacuation Hospital, serving from May 1942 to November 1945 as chief of the orthope- dic service.
Shortly after his discharge from the service in 1945, Dr. Harrington came to Houston, Texas, to practice medicine. He undertook with great zeal the position of caring for the post-poliomyelitic patients at the City/County Hospital. Initially there were very few patients, but in the late 1940s the patient load increased dramatically as a result of the poliomyelitis epidemics. Through Dr.
Harrington’s work with Baylor College of Medi- cine, the Southwest Respiratory Foundation of the National Infantile Paralysis Association was established, the first such organization in the nation.
During this time, Dr. Harrington became inter- ested in scoliosis, having realized that the current methods for treating scoliosis were inappropriate for the patient who was severely paralyzed after poliomyelitis. His initial treatment for scoliosis resulting from poliomyelitis was manual correc- tion of the scoliotic deformity at the time of surgery, and internal fixation of each facet. This worked well initially, but the fixation did not hold.
Over the next 10 years, Dr. Harrington developed the spinal instruments that bear his name. In the beginning, he would fashion the instruments the night before surgery. After surgery the next day, he would modify the design for the next patient, according to how the operation on the previous patient went. Once the basic design was devel- oped, he had it tested extensively by the Engi- neering Department at Rice University in Houston, Texas, and at a commercial testing company in Chicago, Illinois. He then allowed the instruments to be sold, but initially only to those who personally had seen his technique performed.
Dr. Harrington belonged to many medical asso- ciations, and was one of the founding members of the Scoliosis Research Society. He was president of the society from 1972 to 1973. Dr. Harrington was orthopedic consultant to the United States Air Force and to the United States Army in San
Antonio, Texas. During the late 1950s and early 1960s he traveled extensively, demonstrating his surgical technique, and during this time many lifelong friendships were formed. No one could associate with Paul for any great length of time without realizing the unique individual he was.
In the course of his life Dr. Harrington con- tributed more than 30 publications and he gave an instructional course on the treatment of scoliosis at the annual American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons’ meeting for 11 consecutive years. He was Professor, Division of Orthopedic Surgery, and Professor, Department of Rehabilitation, at the Baylor College of Medicine.
Paul was one of those unusual persons with boundless energy. During the 1950s and 1960s, when most of his time was consumed by the development of the Harrington instruments and his theories concerning the treatment of the scol- iotic patient, he found the time to design a 54-foot aluminium catamaran from the ground up, which he then had built. During the same period he also became an expert on photography and high- fidelity systems.
It was only in the latter part of his life that Dr. Harrington became well recognized for his accomplishments as recipient of the Most Distin- guished Alumnus Award in 1975 from the Medical Alumni Association at the University of Kansas. He also received the Cora and Webb Mading Medal from the Institute for Rehabilita- tion and Research and Baylor College of Medi- cine in 1973, and the Nicolas Andry Award from the Association of Bone and Joint Surgeons in 1973.
Paul Randall Harrington died on November 29, 1980, ending a life of accomplishment that began in Kansas City, Kansas, on September 27, 1911.
He will be remembered, not only for the devel- opment of the Harrington instruments, but also for his straightforward frankness, his bow ties, his par golf, his smile, his trumpet, and above all for being a nice person.
125
