A pioneer in the field of orthopedic surgery, Thomas Mallory, M.D., of Loudonville, Ohio, passed away on May 1, 2019.
A lifetime leader in the field, he performed the first U.S. total hip replacement surgery in Columbus, Ohio, in 1971. Dr. Mallory was also responsible for co-creating the innovative Mallory Head Total Hip System, a comprehensive hip prosthetic technology that is now used internationally. He leaves behind a significant body of professional accomplishments and research which have impacted the field of orthopedic surgery on multiple levels.
Education
Dr. Mallory was born on January 10, 1939 in Hillsboro, Ohio. He completed his bachelor’s degree at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, where he lettered in varsity football during each of those four years.
Dr. Mallory entered medical school at the Ohio State University College of Medicine in 1961. While attending medical school, he met his future wife, Kelly Smith. Dr. Mallory completed both his medical training and orthopedic residency at Ohio State. In addition, Dr. Mallory completed a research fellowship at Tufts University. He was also a hip surgery fellow at Harvard Medical School. He would go on to engage in several decades of clinical practice, research, teaching, training, and study.
Career
Between 1965 and 1974, Mallory served in the 2291st Medical Corps as a Reserve Officer. In 1971, Dr. Mallory performed the first full hip replacement in the United States at the Ohio State University Hospital. The following year, Dr. Mallory founded Joint Implants Surgeons (JIS), a practice specializing in total hip and total knee replacement where he actively practiced medicine for 30 years.
Dr. Mallory had a vision for an efficient and evidence-based surgical practice. His funeral obituary stated that Mallory “envisioned an orthopaedic surgery center that would embody this commitment by continually developing methodologies that allowed for ever-greater efficiencies in both the operating room and post-operative care.” He employed a patient-centered, research-driven team approach to clinical care that was unique in the time he began practicing. Dr. Mallory’s vision for JIS eventually gave life to New Albany Surgical Hospital, a surgery center specializing in orthopedic care.
In addition to writing and contributing to hundreds of publications throughout the course of his clinical career, Dr. Mallory was fascinated with biomedical engineering and co-created a hip prosthesis. Along with Ohio State University professorial colleague Dr. William C. Head, he designed the Mallory-Head Hip Implant System. Marketed by Biomet in 1984, the cementless prosthesis became rapidly employed worldwide as a technology that leaves hip replacement patients with less chronic pain.
Dr. Mallory founded the Department of Orthopaedics at Ohio State University College of Medicine. He filled the role of initial chair and was later Emeritus Chairman of this department. During his term as active Chairman, he was at the helm of efforts to procure the present Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center East.
I knew Dr. Thomas Mallory for many years. He was a man of compassion, a good customer as well as friend. Sold him several pieces of equipment while he lived in the Pataskala Ohio area. RIP Tom Mallory .😁
In 1997 Dr Thomas Mallory was the speaker at the Alabama Orthopaedic Prayer/Fellowship Breakfast. He traveled with his brother from Ohio to south Alabama to share his faith in his Savior the Lord Jesus Christ. And it was evident that Dr Mallory had a strong faith. I know he is missed by his family. And to those who believe there will be a great reunion.