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 It is now more than 25 years since I first met Dr. Johnson in East Lansing, Michigan, where he had set up a beautiful and highly efficient orthopedic practice, together with a sophisticated and high-tech surgical unit in the hospital, serving as something of a Mecca for generations of arthroscopic surgeons from all over the world.
Dr. Johnson was the first to offer arthroscopic surgery on a truly professional level that went way beyond the more or less experimental approach found elesewhere at that time. I remember seing him record his arthroscopic interventions while he was performing in the operating theater and - believe it or not - these tapes were later sold to surgeons that had subscribed to his educational series describing various surgical techniques. To think that those tapes were sold unedited will give you an idea of Dr. Johnson's surgical skills and mastery, which were way ahead of everyone else's at the time. Watching him do surgery was a real pleasure. The way he would move around the patient somehow reminded me of a panther, with such extreme grace and self-assurance. I hardly ever saw him have to repeat something because it hadn't worked the first time. His movements didn't seem fast at all, but an abrasion arthroplasty with osteotomy took him no more than 40 minutes.
But that is not all. Most of the instruments that we have come to appreciate in our daily work are down to Dr. Johnson, whether it is the shaver, the abrader, bone tunnel impactors, meniscal repair sets or ACL aiming devices. And as if this were not enough, he was also running his own company - Instrument Makar - and very successfully at that. The list of Dr. Johnsons's achievements is endless, but let me just name a few of them:
Dr. Johnson has organised 88 international seminars, published 52 papers in international scientific journals, written 21 books and book chapters, presented 34 papers at international conferences and holds 44 U.S. patents for his many inventions.
Although now retired, he continues to take a vivid interest in biologic research and is still busy in a number of frontline research projects, such as gene therapy.
We are all very honored to have him here with us, we are grateful for his contribution, and glad that he is accepting the Honorary Presidency of our new association, the International Association for Biologic Joint Reconstruction.
Dr. Jürgen Toft
President of IAJR
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