James Dundas-Grant

A prolific writer, an innovator of surgical instruments and procedures, James Dundas-Grant was an ear, nose and throat surgeon regarded as one of the personalities of London medical society. Outwith medicine he was recognised as a gifted musician and orchestral conductor.

James Dundas-Grant was the son of an Edinburgh advocate, educated at the Universities of Edinburgh and Wurzburg, before graduating in medicine from Edinburgh in 1876 and MB CM three years later. That same year, he was appointed Surgeon to the Central London Throat and Ear Hospital and developed a career in otology and laryngology. On retiral from this post in 1913, he became a Consulting Surgeon with appointments in several London hospitals.

He was a prolific writer, contributing to the literature on diverse aspects of ENT practice. His knowledge of the specialty was widely regarded as encyclopaedic and he had a particular panache for devising medical instruments, several of which were widely used. An enthusiastic musician, he took particular delight in his appointment as Surgeon to the Royal Academy of Music and the Royal Society of Musicians. His leisure activities included orchestral conducting.

He became President of the Section of Laryngology and Otology of both the British Medical Association and the Royal Society of Medicine and was President of the British Laryngological Association.