11/05/2024
William Warwick James
William Warwick James lived from 1874 to 1965 and was said to be one of the most inspiring and outstanding dental surgeons of his time. He was born in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, and attended the Royal Dental and Middlesex Hospital schools. He obtained both dental and medical qualifying diplomas in 1902 and undoubtedly laid the foundation for double degree status for future generations of oral and maxillofacial surgeons. In 1905 he obtained the FRCS (England). He worked at the Royal Dental and Middlesex Hospitals and the Hospital for Sick Children at Great Ormond Street, London. He also continued to work in dental practice throughout his career.
Warwick James' passion from early in his career and throughout, even beyond retirement from clinical practice, was research. He co-authored several important papers of the day on subjects such as odontomes (a classification of these was developed and used for many years afterwards), dental cysts, caries, bleeding related to extractions and facial fractures, mouth breathing and pyorrhoea alveolaris – the latter a precursor to future work on periodontal disease. In 1923 he obtained the Tomes prize (RCS England). During and after the First World War he worked with the maxillofacial unit at the Third London General Hospital where he repaired many extensive facial injuries and received an OBE for services to Queen and country. This was before the establishment of the special maxillofacial unit at Sidcup and he developed new methods for the treatment of severe facial wounds. In 1940 he co-authored an authoritative text of the day with Benjamin W. Fickling, entitled Injuries to the face and jaws with special reference to war casualties, the source materials for which were his own notes and records, as official records at Sidcup and Aldershot were destroyed during the First World War. It is interesting to note that Warwick James performed facial and dental operations before the days of endotracheal intubation and antibiotics. In later life he was awarded an honorary MCh from Birmingham University for outstanding contributions and continued research into areas such as comparative anatomy and palaeontology. He encouraged others to pursue research, developed a research fund and had an eponymous lecture founded in his honour at the Royal Dental Hospital School in 1962.
