vides a memento of “Pugh of Carshalton,” who devoted his life to the care of crippled children.
References
1. D’Arcy Power, Le Fanu (1953) 2. Pugh (1905)
3. Pugh WTG (1926) 4. Pugh WTG (1925–1926) 5. Pugh WTG (1937) 6. Pugh WTG (1926–1927) 7. Pugh WTG (1925) 8. Pugh WTG (1921) 9. Pugh WTG (1922–1923) 10. Rang (1966)
11. Wastson-Jones (1952)
foreign editor of The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery since January 1928.
Bologna was a Roman city. The Cathedral of San Pietro e San Paolo, built in part from the Roman remains, was erected in the fourth century.
The city has long been a seat of learning, and legends attribute the founding of the famous Uni- versity of Bologna to Theodosius the Great in 425 A.D. Among the students of this university were Dante (1265–1321), Petrarch (1304–1374), and Luigi Galvani (1737–1798), the discoverer of galvinism. One of the most famous professors was the anatomist Marcello Malpighi (1628–1694). In 1262 the students of the univer- sity were said to number nearly 10,000. The student population has decreased, but the medical school of the university is still outstanding.
The Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli is situated on a hill on the outskirts of this fascinating old city and occupies the picturesque buildings of a Benedic- tine monastery known as San Michele in Bosco.
The early years of this institute for crippled children were not noteworthy, until Alessandro Codivilla, modest and skillful master, became its director and surgeon-in-chief. This great general surgeon, after excelling in the surgery of the gastrointestinal tract and the brain, devoted his talents to orthopedic surgery, and the “Istituto”
became world-famous. Codivilla made original and important contributions to the surgery of frac- tures and the methods of tendon transplantation, and to the development and standing of the specialty.
At his death in 1912, Codivilla was succeeded by Vittorio Putti, the son of a well-known surgeon who was for many years professor of surgery in the University of Bologna. Putti had first become identified with the Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli in 1903, when Codivilla had appointed him as an assistant. Following 2 years of study in European clinics, he returned to the institution in 1909 as vice director, and in 1914 became director and surgeon-in-chief of the Istituto. He was also professor of orthopedic surgery at the University of Bologna.
In 1922 he opened the country branch, which provided for the care of 100 cases of surgical tuberculosis, and as director of this hospital (Isti- tuto dio terapico Codivilla di Corona d’Ampezzo) in the Dolomites, he found frequent escape from his very strenuous city life.
A brilliant student, a wide reader, an able administrator, a resourceful and skillful surgeon with a mechanical bent, he enhanced the 283
Who’s Who in Orthopedics
Vittorio PUTTI
1880–1940
Vittorio Putti was professor in the University of Bologna, surgeon-in-chief of the Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, a founder of the Société Internationale de Chirurgie Orthopédique et de Traumatologie and president of its 1936 Congress, Honorary Member of the British Orthopedic Association, the American Orthope- dic Association, Corresponding Member of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, and many other national organizations. He was a bib- liographer, medical historian, orthopedic investi- gator, and teacher of surgeons. He had been a
reputation of the Istituto Rizzoli, and like Codivilla, made lasting contributions to the history of medicine and to the technique of ortho- pedic surgery.
In addition to being a tireless and exacting trainer of young surgeons, he encouraged his associates to become familiar with the history of medicine and the contributory sciences, to strive for exactitude in thought and action, and to appre- ciate beauty, not only of art and nature, but of character. His sanctum sanctorum, which he shared with his helpers, was the library (La Bib- lioteca Umberto I). On the walls of this dignified room are the same beautiful frescoes, executed by Canuti, that had given joy to the monks, and on its shelves are books and manuscripts covering a period of over 400 years.
By his numerous original contributions he became an international leader, a pioneer and an authority on bone and joint surgery, especially on congenital dislocation of the hip, its preluxation stage and its automatic reduction by the divari- catore, arthritis, arthroplasty, “sciatica,” the forcible manipulation of adult club feet, the open treatment of fractures and the use of skeletal trac- tion and metal fixation, the equalization of leg lengths by bone lengthening, spinal anomalies, cineplastic amputations and artificial limbs, and the surgical treatment of the residual effects of poliomyelitis. He published many monographs, not only on strictly medical and surgical subjects, but also on nonmedical subjects; as well as trans- lations of old medical works. His large quarto,
“Berengario da Carpi,” published in 1937, repre- sents not only a profound and extensive piece of research, but the best biographical study of this great surgeon and anatomist, who antedates Vesalius. This work alone places him among the great medical historians. His latest volume, pub- lished in 1940, is entitled “Cura operatoria delle fratture del collo del femore.”
He was active in organizing La Chirurgia degli Organi di Movimento, which was first published in 1917. He continued as the editor of this out- standing medical journal until his death.
He was an accomplished linguist and lectured by invitation in practically every country, includ- ing the United States, England, France, Germany, and Russia. He visited England and America often and loved them both. He was a guest of the American Orthopedic Association at its Boston meeting in 1921, and delivered later the Lane lec- tures in California. He was the guest speaker at the Congress of the American College of
Surgeons held in Boston in 1934 and in Chicago in 1937.
His titles were too numerous to mention, for he was a corresponding, honorary, or active member of most of the orthopedic societies of the world.
His honors included civilian, medical, surgical, military, and academic recognition. He received from the King the title of Grand Officiali of the Crown of Italy.
Putti enjoyed the friendship of a host of physi- cians and surgeons throughout the world and was an inspiration to them. Those who knew him well discovered a depth of feeling and a capacity for friendship that were the true attributes of his char- acter. After the death of his professional ideal, Sir Robert Jones, he wrote the following letter in English to an American colleague. Its exquisite diction suggests a faith and an affection that are almost religious in nature.
Dear—
The death of our unforgettable Sir Robert has made me think a great deal about you in these days. It is a great friend who has left us, and I think that all of us who loved him feel the need of uniting together in his memory. Let our friendship find in his memory strength of faith and reason of comfort. Do not forget me and believe me
Affectionately yours, PUTTI
Vittorio Putti will rank among the great ortho- pedic surgeons of all time—great in heart as well as in mind and hand.
284 Who’s Who in Orthopedics
