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UC San Diego orthopedist Dr. Wayne H. Akeson has been awarded a $50,000 national prize for distinguished achievement in orthopedic research.
Akeson received the Briston-Meyers/Zimmer Award on Monday at the American Orthopedic Assn.’s meeting in Colorado Springs, Colo. He is a professor of surgery and head of the division of orthopedics and rehabilitation at the UCSD School of Medicine.
Akeson’s early works, considered classic in the field, showed that limited, highly controlled movement helps patients immediately after tendon and ligament surgery.
His research team also adapted a common type of catheter to rapidly diagnose compartment syndrome, a condition that causes catastrophic pressures to build up in muscles. The device now can be used to spare unconscious accident victims amputation or permanent nerve damage.
Akeson joined the UCSD faculty in 1970 and served as acting medical dean from 1986 to 1988.
He was selected for the award, in its second year, by the presidents of the five major orthopedic societies in the country. Last year’s recipient was Dr. Melvin Glimcher, professor at Harvard Medical School.
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