was the recipient of many distinctions: in 1764 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society; the next year he was appointed Master of the Corpo- ration of Surgeons; in 1786 he was elected the first Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and the year after that an Honorary Member of the Royal College of Sur- geons in Ireland. These last two honors were con- ferred upon him at about the time of his retirement from St. Bartholomew’s Hospital on July 12, 1787, after having, as he said, “served it man and boy for half a century.” At the annual meeting of the hospital subscribers, he was elected a gover- nor and at dinner that followed there was a moving scene. The Right Honorable Thomas Harley proposed the toast of Percivall Pott, who was usually composed and eloquent, but on this occasion was overcome with such emotion that, after rising to reply, was unable to speak and resumed his seat in silence.
He continued to practice, but his retirement lasted only about 18 months. On December 27, 1788, he died of pneumonia due to a chill he caught while visiting a patient in severe weather 20 miles from London. His last conscious words were: “My lamp is almost extinguished; I hope it has burnt for the benefit of others.” He was buried at Aldermary Church in Bow Lane, close to the remains of his mother.
Percivall Pott was a great leader in surgery who shone as a clinical surgeon. He flourished before the emergence of surgical pathology under John Hunter, and the deductions from his clinical observation suffered from this lack of scientific interpretation. He was, however, particularly free from the shackles of tradition and was bold enough to cut a path of his own. In a sense he was more acquainted with the practice of surgery than Hunter but he lacked, as they all lacked before the coming of Pasteur and Lister, the one key that saved surgery from being a tragic adventure.
Percivall Pott is an outstanding figure in the evolution of surgery in Britain. He took part in the formation of the Corporation of Surgeons and became its Master, started organized teaching of medical students, and by his humane attitude, good sense and personal integrity helped greatly to raise the status of surgery in this country. His writings were clear and composed with scholarly grace, and his observations recorded faithfully without being tedious. Their translation into European languages did much to promote the prestige of British surgery abroad.
References
1. Horder TJ (1894) Life and Works of Percivall Pott.
St. Bartholomew’s Hospital Reports 30:163 2. Lloyd, G Marner (1933) Life and Works of Perci-
vall Pott. St. Bartholomew’s Hospital Reports 66:291
3. Pott, Percivall (1790) The Chirurgical Works of Percivall Pott, FRS, to which are added “A short Account of the Life of the Author,” by James Earle, Esq. Three volumes. London, printed for J. Johnson 4. Power, Sir D’Arcy (1923) Percivall Pott: His own
Fracture. British Journal of Surgery 10:313 5. Power, Sir D’Arcy (1929) The Works of Percivall
Pott. British Journal of Surgery 17:1
278 Who’s Who in Orthopedics
Kenneth Hampden PRIDIE
1906–1963
Born in Bristol, educated at Clifton College and the University of Bristol, Ken was a true son of that ancient city, in which he spent his whole life and to which he contributed considerable luster, both in orthopedic surgery and in sport. K.P. was an impressive personality, a character in the best sense of the term, and his life and work depict the originality of his mind. Once equipped with his Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, he made comparatively brief visits to Böhler’s clinic in Vienna, to Watson-Jones’ frac- ture clinic in Liverpool and to Girdlestone at Oxford, and by the age of 28 was appointed assis- tant fracture surgeon at the Bristol Royal Infir- mary, to become the first surgeon in Bristol to devote himself entirely to orthopedic surgery. His
ability, enthusiasm and boundless energy led to his early recognition in Bristol and in many centers throughout the country as one with an important contribution. In these early days he worked closely with the late E.W. Hey Groves, who had recently retired from the Bristol General Hospital. Hey Groves frequently visited the frac- ture clinic and these two personalities, with much in common, would have long and entertaining arguments, Ken being typically uninhibited even in the presence of this doyen of orthopedic surgery. Throughout his life he retained a great admiration for Hey Groves, to whose inspiration he always felt he owed so much, and who had, even in those early days, already successfully per- formed most of the technical innovations of recent years.
The fracture clinic grew in numbers and repu- tation, and in spite of poor premises, became one of the best known in the country. Ken Pridie also took a leading part in extending the activities of Winford Orthopaedic Hospital to include adult patients, and this expansion was accelerated by the exigencies of war. He spread his influence by setting up clinics in Bridgwater, Burnham-on-Sea and Tetbury hospitals.
In these early days K.P. seldom missed a meeting of the British Orthopaedic Association, which he enlivened by his frequent interventions, something sadly missed in recent years. To see his massive form advance toward the rostrum would stimulate flagging interest, and a smattering of overstatement would only whet the appetite. He was a forthright and colorful speaker, with a great aptitude for quotation and a pleasant wit. He was never ashamed to ask questions or confess igno- rance and, in spite of a formidable exterior, always retained an engaging humility. His contri- butions to the literature were not numerous, and those who worked with him know that his ideas and practices should have had a wider circulation and that he could have written more to our great benefit.
He was original in thought and practice and always averse to the slavish following of estab- lished methods. He welcomed innovation and never became set in his ideas, even in fields to which he had contributed a great deal. He was always showing new interests and attacking new problems with a youthful enthusiasm and vigor.
Some of his most valuable contributions com- prised the application of engineering and carpen- try to orthopedic surgery: the traction beam with square rods throughout, to obviate the rotation of
pulley fixtures—usually ineffectively held by the overworked thumb screw; the grapple attach- ments to enable it to be fixed readily to any type of bed; the wooden frame for holding the leg with knee bent, so controlling rotation and simplifying radiography in fractures of the neck of the femur;
the frequent use of the Forstner augur bit, as in his operation to fuse the ankle; the widespread use of staples; the excellent ball-cutter for the acetab- ulum in hip arthroplasty, comprising a tool far superior to any other designed for this purpose;
and many ingenious modifications to instruments that have enhanced their effectiveness. He was a true disciple of Hey Groves.
The techniques favored by K.P. were simple and he eschewed the elaborate and complicated, whether in theory or practice. He was a beautiful operator and always a courageous one. Although full of vision and enterprise, his practice always remained sound, held in check above all by the kindness of heart that preserved his patients from too much surgery and from that painful elabora- tion of after-treatment that one sometimes meets.
Although his interests in orthopedic surgery were widespread, his best known work was in the treat- ment of fractures and in osteoarthritis of the hip and knee. “New hips for old” was his challenging call in an article on arthroplasty.
In the field of sport, K.P. was outstanding. He was the university heavyweight boxing champion in 1925–1926 and played regularly in the pack for the Bristol Rugby Club between 1929 and 1934.
It was in shot putting, the discus and in hammer throwing that he was best known. He held the record as Midland shot-putting champion from 1931 to 1951, and broke the British native record for discus in 1931. He represented England in the Empire Games in 1930 and 1934 and was selected for the Olympic Games in 1932, although he was unfortunately prevented from participating.
For all his eminence in orthopedic surgery and athletics, it will be as a man that K.P. will best be remembered; his infectious enthusiasm made one feel better for being in his company. His witty sayings, kindly humor and simple tastes endeared him to the children of his colleagues and most cer- tainly to all of his delightful family of seven children.
He was utterly devoid of malice, with a very kind heart set in a powerful physique and con- trolling a strong personality, a man of integrity and warmth and the staunchest of friends. He was content to devote his undoubted talents to fur- thering orthopedic surgery in Bristol and was not 279
Who’s Who in Orthopedics
Who’s Who in Orthopedics
a seeker after high places. He was not a “com- mittee man” but could be irritating and irrepress- ible in committee, usually presenting some aspect of the subject normally ignored yet worthy of further consideration.
His originality and personality brought numer- ous overseas visitors to Bristol and many were privileged to be entertained by K.P., with Joanna his wife and the seven children, at The Chalet, their country resort with a few acres of woodland, perhaps to participate in a barbecue or in the felling of trees, but certainly in some vigorous open-air occupation that was so dear to his heart.
Others might meet the Pridies in the Isles of Scilly, where swimming and boating were the regular holiday activities based on their diminu- tive holiday abode on St. Mary’s.
Kenneth Pridie, Lecturer in Orthopedic Surgery at the University of Bristol and Senior Orthopedic Surgeon at Bristol Royal Hospital and Winford Orthopedic Hospital, died suddenly on May 4, 1963, at the age of 57 years while reading a paper to the South-West Orthopedic Club meeting at Exeter. He had had to reduce his activ- ities since the first evidence of cardiac insuffi- ciency in 1962 and appeared to be doing well until shortly before his death, when friends were alarmed by news of heart failure, but he insisted on giving his paper on anterior fusion of the cer- vical spine.
280
William Thomas Gordon PUGH
1872–1945
William Thomas Gordon Pugh was the Medical Superintendent of Queen Mary’s Hospital for Children, Carshalton, from 1909 until his retire- ment in 1937. Originally a physician, he became interested, of necessity, in children’s orthopedics, and during those 28 years established and directed one of the first two long-stay children’s country hospitals in the south of England. Both Pugh and his hospital became well known for the manage- ment of skeletal tuberculosis and poliomyelitis.
Pugh is best remembered for his “traction by suspension” and for his “Carshalton carriages,”
which were the tools he used to diminish the destructive changes so manifest in tuberculous joints treated without traction.
William Thomas Pugh was born in 1872 at Hodley, a village in Montgomeryshire. In 1899 he adopted by deed poll the additional Christian name of Gordon. He was educated at Ardwyn School, Aberystwyth, University College, Aberystwyth, and the Middlesex Hospital Medical School, where he was entrance scholar and subsequently Lyell Gold Medallist in prac- tical surgery, Senior Broderip Scholar and Governors’ Prizeman. He qualified in 1894 and graduated the following year with first-class honors in surgery and honors in medicine and obstetrics. After the customary junior appoint- ments at his teaching hospital and in children’s work, he joined the fever service of the Metro- politan Asylums Board in 1897. The following year he gained the MD and in 1907 became
