1924-2019

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David Manson saw periodontics not as a special branch of dentistry, but as a discipline central to the practice of sound conservative dentistry. His inspirational book Periodontics for the dental practitioner, first published in 1966, was a classic and has contributed to the education of many dental students over many years through its various updated editions.

It has been said of him that he was 'one of the first people to write about patients as real people, and to think in a holistic way.' He had a significant influence on the developing specialty of periodontology, and an enormous impact on the training of younger colleagues, influencing patient care, improving treatment outcomes, and by raising the awareness of gum health at a time when little was known about its importance, particularly to general health.

Born in August 1924 in Dundee, he later moved to Nottingham and eventually to Leeds. He read copiously during a childhood illness and in one of the books he found at home, he read that African natives cleaned their teeth with twigs. The 8-year-old broke off a privet twig to brush his teeth with. His mouth and face were covered with city soot and he concluded that the trees of Africa were cleaner than the hedges of Chapeltown. David always said that this was his first piece of clinical research.

Although he became disillusioned with general dental practice towards the end of the 1950s, and considered giving up dentistry altogether, his wife, Hilda, supported him in switching from general to specialised dentistry and after gaining a Fellowship in Dental Surgery he aimed for academe in the only subject not fully explored at that time, periodontology. He studied in Boston, USA in 1959-60 after which he started work at the Royal Dental Hospital in London.

He continued to research, gaining a PhD on the growth of the lower mandible in 1963 and became a popular international lecturer and teacher. He published numerous papers on bone loss and inflammation in periodontal disease and was one of the early writers about the role of immunopathology in periodontitis in 1982.

He was a prominent member of the British Society of Periodontology, of which he was President in 1974-75 and was the first recipient of Honorary Membership, the Society's highest honour, in 1983, a mark of the great respect in which he was held.

David combined excellent academic and practical ability which served him well into his retirement when (amongst other things), he wrote biographies of his mentor Sir Wilfred Fish and of twentieth century visual artists; one of his sculptures was exhibited at the Royal Academy.

He is survived by his children, Lesley, Claire, Nicky and Andrew, and five beloved grandchildren.

Philip R. Greene