Ian Scott Smillie (15 April 1907 – 18 March 1992) was a British professor of orthopaedic surgery who became an international authority on conditions of the knee. He devised techniques and instruments to facilitate the surgical excision of the damaged knee meniscus. He was an early advocate of specialist team care in orthopaedics and of early mobilisation. His textbooks ''Injuries of the knee joint'' and ''Diseases of the knee Joint'' were widely read throughout the world''.'' In 1981 he was elected president of the International Society of the Knee.

Early life

Smillie was born in Dublin to Scottish parents. He was educated at

Merchiston Castle School Merchiston Castle School is an independent boarding school for boys in the suburb of Colinton in Edinburgh, Scotland. It has around 470 pupils and is open to boys between the ages of 7 and 18 as either boarding or day pupils; it was modelled ...

, Edinburgh and at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

, qualifying

MB ChB A Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (; MBBS, also abbreviated as BM BS, MB ChB, MB BCh, or MB BChir) is a medical degree granted by medical schools or universities in countries that adhere to the United Kingdom's higher education tradi ...

in 1931. After junior hospital posts in Chester and Grimsby, he became, in 1936, clinical assistant to Mr (later Sir)

Walter Mercer Sir Walter Mercer Order of the British Empire, KBE FRSE Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, FRCSEd Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, FRCPE Legum Doctor, LLD (19 March 1890 – 23 February 1971) was a Scottish orthopaedic surgeon. He wa ...

who later became the first Professor of

Orthopaedic Surgery Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics (American and British English spelling differences, alternative spelling orthopaedics) is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgic ...

in Edinburgh. In 1938 he was elected a member of the

Harveian Society of Edinburgh The Harveian Society of Edinburgh was founded in April 1782 by Andrew Duncan (physician, born 1744), Andrew Duncan. The Society holds an annual Festival in honour of the life and works of William Harvey, the physician who first correctly des ...

. At the start of World War II Smillie was appointed surgeon in charge of the

Emergency Medical Service Emergency medical services (EMS), also known as ambulance services, pre-hospital care or paramedic services, are emergency services that provide urgent pre-hospital treatment and stabilisation for serious illness and injuries and transport to ...

Hospital at

Larbert Larbert (, ) is a town in the Falkirk (council area), Falkirk council area of Scotland. The town lies in the Forth Valley above the River Carron (Forth), River Carron which flows from the west. Larbert is from the shoreline of the Firth of Fo ...

, Stirlingshire. Here he developed specialist team care for patients, with the teams including specialist nurses, physiotherapists and

orthotists An orthotist is a healthcare professional who specializes in the provision of Orthotics, orthoses. An orthotist has an overall responsibly of orthotics treatment, who can supervise and mentor the practice of other personnel. They are clinicians t ...

. In recognition of this wartime service, he was made an OBE in 1946.

Career

Smillie had from an early stage in his career devoted himself to orthopaedic surgery. When the National Health Service (NHS) was established in 1948 he was made surgeon in charge of orthopaedics for the NHS Eastern Scotland area. He was awarded a gold medal by the University of Edinburgh for his ChM thesis. Also in 1948 he went to the United States of America and Canada as a Nuffield Travelling Fellow. He developed the orthopaedic service at Bridge of Earn Hospital and set up orthopaedic clinics at

Dundee Royal Infirmary Dundee Royal Infirmary, often shortened to DRI, was a major teaching hospital in Dundee, Scotland. Until the opening of Ninewells Hospital in 1974, Dundee Royal Infirmary was Dundee's main hospital. It was closed in 1998, after 200 years of opera ...

. In both centres he continued to promote and develop the concept of team care in orthopaedics and emphasised the importance of rehabilitation. In 1967 he became the first Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at the

University of St Andrews The University of St Andrews (, ; abbreviated as St And in post-nominals) is a public university in St Andrews, Scotland. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, f ...

transferring to the

University of Dundee The University of Dundee is a public research university based in Dundee, Scotland. It was founded as a university college in 1881 with a donation from the prominent Baxter family of textile manufacturers. The institution was, for most of its ...

when the bulk of the medical school moved there. Smillie was regarded as an excellent technical surgeon and an inspiring teacher. He became an influential authority on knee conditions. His book ''Injuries of the knee joint'', first published in 1946, became widely read throughout the English-speaking world and was to be published in five English language editions and a Spanish edition. ''Diseases of the knee Joint'', first published in 1974 went to three editions and was also published in Spanish. Smillie was an enthusiastic advocate of removal of the injured

meniscus Meniscus may refer to: *Meniscus (anatomy), crescent-shaped fibrocartilaginous structure that partly divides a joint cavity *Meniscus (liquid) In physics (particularly liquid statics), the meniscus (: menisci, ) is the curve in the upper sur ...

and developed instruments and techniques to facilitate this procedure. From the 1980s advances in technology and understanding of the adverse consequences of meniscectomy led to a more conservative approach being adopted. In 1981 Smillie was elected president of the International Society of the Knee.

Leisure pursuits

Smillie had a wide range of leisure pursuits. In the 1930s he took part in car racing at the Brookland's circuit. In later life he bought and farmed an estate in Perthshire. He was an enthusiastic salmon fisherman and his interest in

deer stalking Deer stalking, or simply stalking, is a British term for the stealthy pursuit of deer on foot to hunt for venison, for leisure, as trophies, or to control their numbers as part of wildlife management, just as with rabbiting and boar hunting. D ...

led to his writing ''A Guide to the Stalking of Red Deer in Scotland''.

Family

Smillie married Delicia Ash in 1941. They had two daughters. In 1956 he married Janet Bissett.

Legacy

The Ian Smillie award is presented each year by the University of Dundee to the most distinguished student on the Master of Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgery (ChM Orth) course. The streets Smillie Place,

Bridge of Earn Bridge of Earn () is a small town in Perthshire, Scotland. Often referred to simply as 'Brig' (Scots Language, Scots for 'bridge'). The village grew up on the south bank of an important crossing of the River Earn, whose sandstone bridge existed ...

and Smillie Court,

Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year population estimate for the locality was . It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firt ...

are named for him.

Selected publications

*
Diseases of the knee Joint
' *
Injuries of the knee joint
' *A ''Guide to the Stalking of Red Deer in Scotland''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smillie, Ian Scott 1907 births 1992 deaths Medical doctors from Edinburgh People educated at Merchiston Castle School Fellows of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh British orthopaedic surgeons 20th-century British surgeons Academics of the University of St Andrews Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Medical School Members of the Harveian Society of Edinburgh