About the Author
Alexander Walker-Naddell was born in Glasgow and studied medicine at Glasgow University, qualifying just before the outbreak of the Second World War. After the war, Walker Naddell was involved with the Strategic Command and resumed his studies and became a Fellow of the Royal Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons (qua Surgeon) and later a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons.
He worked first as a General Surgeon, later specialising in orthopedic and nero-surgeon, at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary and Killearn Hospital and it was during this period that the major part of his research into the anatomy of the spinal column took place.
Over 40 years ago, he set up in private practice in the West End of Glasgow and achieved so much success with his unique treatment of the slipped disc, that his reputation in this sphere spread, not only throughout the United Kingdom, but overseas as well. Many patients have come from the United States, Canada, the Middle East and even as far as Australia. Sportsmen and women, in particular, sought his help and many have publicly expressed their gratitude for being able to continue in their sporting careers due to his treatment.
Quite apart from his success in his professional life he has received many other honours reflecting his varied activities. He was made a Knight of Justice of the Most Venerable Order of St. John of Jerusalem in recognition of his work for that Order. For services to his City he was appointed Deputy Lieutenant of Glasgow and for over twenty years he was a J.P. and later acted as a District Court Judge. He has been actively associated with the Army as well as taking part in Defence Reorganisation and military training and strategy. In recognition of this he was awarded the Emergency Reserve Decoration.
Throughout his life he was passionately interested in all kinds of sports, especially golf, rugby and boxing. In his youth he was a keen athlete, especially noted for his sprinting, and he represented his University many times in his student days. It was perhaps his active participation in sport that first led so many sportsmen and women to come to him for help. A diagnosis of a slipped disc meant that, either the continuous intense pain or the variable results of surgery to cure it, would inevitably have adverse consequences on their game and ruin their careers. A good sportsman or woman, often at the peak of achievement, would be lost forever. After treatment by the special technique for the non-surgical detachment of the slipped disc, these players have been able to continue to play their sport within a fortnight and many top players, golfers, footballers, rugby players, etc., owe their success to the treatment of Mr. Walker-Naddell. The ability to cure this group of patients, combining, as it does, his medical skills with his involvement in the world of sport has perhaps provided some of the most rewarding experiences of his professional life.