| AdminHistory | Alan John Clive Lee was born on 18 February 1939 in King's Norton, Birmingham and educated in Solihull, West Midlands, before undertaking an apprenticeship with Rolls-Royce, at which time he studied mechanical engineering at the University of Nottingham, where he received first class honours in 1961.
Lee was appointed assistant lecturer at the University of Exeter in 1966, where he went on to become a fellow in the School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics, before being made a Professor by the university in 2020.
Lee is best known for his work co-creating the Exeter hip system, in collaboration with orthopaedic surgeon Mr Robin Ling (who was based at the Princess Elizabeth Orthopaedic Hospital). The reason the Exeter hip was unique, is that it featured a collarless polished tapered hip stem that was set within bone cement. The Exeter hip first came into use in 1970, at which point it was solely used in Exeter. After a trial period in which they closely monitored the performance of the Exeter hip, the new system was rolled out more widely across the NHS and is now used worldwide (being one of the most widely used hip replacements). The Exeter hip evolved over time, with slight changes made to the alloy the hip stem was made from, in the beginning it was made using ductile stainless steel (EN58J), followed by 316L stainless steel and then finally Orthinox HNSS (which is still used in the present day). In 2020 the Exeter hip celebrated it's 50th anniversary.
The Exeter hip was manufactured and distributed on a mass scale by Howmedica (Pfizers orthopaedic unit), in 1998 Howmedica was purchased and absorbed into Stryker, who still manufacture and produce the Exeter hip.
Lee married Pamela Lee in 1965 and they had two children, Philip and Caroline, who both attended the University of Nottingham and studied engineering. Lee also served on Exeter City Council between 1971-1979. Lee died on 2 November 2021, at the age of 82. |