| RefNo | EC/1975/08 |
| Previous numbers | Cert XIX, 156 |
| Level | Item |
| Title | Charnley, John: certificate of election to the Royal Society |
| Description | Citation typed. Letter attached to certificate. |
| Citation | Charnley's outstanding achievement is the development, in the light of his study of lubrication in synovial joints and of the process of wear and tear in plastic prostheses both in the body and when stressed repeatedly under controlled laboratory conditions, of a method of hip replacement in which a biologically inert metal prosthesis is grouted onto the upper part of the femur with acrylic cement and a prosthesis of polytetrafluoroethylene is substituted for the acetabulum. This operation has brought relief to thousands of people crippled by osterarthritis.
Charnley's personal contribution has been decisive not only in matters of surgical technique but in relation to the choice of materials, the mechanical design of the artificial joint, and the development of operating theatre conditions providing a far greater degree of sterility than is normally available. The help he has received from engineering colleagues has been possible because of his remarkable understanding of engineering methods and materials, and because he was able to provide a sufficiently accurate account of the stresses to which the natural hip joint is subject, and a specification of the properties required of an artificial joint to replace it. |
| AccessStatus | Closed |
Fellows associated with this archive
| Code | PersonName | Dates |
| NA6734 | Charnley; Sir; John (1911 - 1982) | 1911 - 1982 |