Joint laxity as a criterion for the design of condylar knee prostheses

Peter S. Walker (Fig 1) studied at the University of Cambridge from which he obtained a Bachelor of Science degree and a Master's degree in Mechanical Sciences in 1963. After a stint as a research engineer at Dunlop, Ltd in Newcastle upon Tyne, he earned a PhD degree in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Leeds. From 1969 to 1976, he was the Director of Bioengineering at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City and an assistant professor at Cornell Medical School. After this, Walker became the Director of Product Development for Howmedica until he moved to Boston. In Boston, he became Director of the Biomechanics Laboratory at Brigham and Women's Hospital and at the Veterans Administration Hospital, West Roxbury and an associate professor at Harvard Medical School. In 1987, Walker returned to England as the Professor of Biomechanical Engineering at University College, London and Director of the Centre of Biomedical Engineering at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital, Stanmore. After 12 years, Walker returned to the United States as Professor and Director of the Center of Biomedical Engineering at the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in New York City, the position he now holds. Walker has published extensively on the subject of total joint replacement, especially of the knee. He has been the president's guest lecturer at the Hip Society and the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. The following paper is considered a seminal work in the design of total knee components.