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January 25, 1994
Media Contact:Gary Stephenson
Phone: (410) 955-5384
E-mail:
Gstephen@welchlink.welch.jhu.edu
Sumio Uematsu, M.D., 59, associate professor of neurological surgery at The Johns
Hopkins University School of Medicine and a neurosurgeon at the Johns Hopkins hospital died
in his sleep Tuesday morning (January 25) at his home in Lutherville, Md.
Uematsu was best known as an epilepsy surgeon. He was involved in pioneering
activities to map the function of the human brain in the course of the surgical treatment of
epilepsy. He also was noted for his surgical skills in relieving spinal problems in dwarfs. Because
of these advances, he was recently proposed for promotion to professor of neurological surgery
at Hopkins.
"John Hopkins School of Medicine has lost an eminent member of its faculty and an
enormously skilled surgeon," said Dean Michael E. Johns, M.D. 'Dr. Uematsu's contributions to
medical science and his devotion to his patients Will be remembered."
James A. Block, M.D., president and chief executive officer of Hopkins hospital
described Uematsu as "a true gentleman who will be missed by the hospital especially by the
Neurometric Laboratory, where he worked so hard to move it forward."
During his 23-year career at Hopkins, Uematsu designed a highly sensitive
computerized skin temperature test for mapping numbness or changes in sensation caused by nerve
injury in the body's limbs. Before, verification of such nerve Maury depended on the patient's
subjective description of the problem, and a pin-prick sensation test. The new method was based
on the principle that nerve damage is accompanied by changes in blood flow to the skin area
served by the nerve.
Active in the American Academy of Thermology, Uematsu served as its president
from 1987 to 1989. He also had been an officer in the World Federation of Neurology and the
International College of Thermology.
Uematsu was founder and director of the Neurometric laboratory at Hopkins, with
a joint associate professorship appointment in radiology. He came to Hopkins in 1970 as an
instructor, was made an assistant professor in 1972 and in 1981 was promoted to associate
professor.
'He founded a laboratory of neurometrics unique at the time for us' technological ways to measure function of the nervous system, including ultrasound, temperature change, and electrical conductivity," noted Donlin M. Long, M.D., neurosurgeon in chief at
Hopkins.
Widely known for his neurological skills, Uematsu delivered research papers or
speeches at numerous medical gatherings in foreign cities, as well as before audiences in the
United States. In 1989, he was a visiting professor at the Kurume University School of Medicine
and the Nippon Medical School in Japan.
Author or coauthor of 169 articles or books, he had been editor in chief of
Thermology, a publication of the American Academy of Thermology. Uematsu also was a fellow
of the American College of Surgeons and the American Academy of Thermology. He was board-
certified by the American
Board of Neurological Surgery, the American Association of Electromyography and
Electrodiaposis and
the American Academy of Thermology.
Uematsu also was a consultant to the Loch Raven Veterans Administration hospital
in Baltimore, The Francis Scott Key Medical Center, Good Samaritan hospital; the Kennedy Krieger Institute;
and the Kathryn and Allan Greenberg Center for Skeletal Dysplasia since its inception at Johns
Hopkins.
Born in Yamanashi, Japan, Uematsu received his medical degree at Juntendo
University in Tokyo in 1959 and served an internship and residency in Tokyo. He came to the
United States in 1962 to complete a rotating internship at Illinois Masonic hospital in Chicago.
A residency in general surgery at Masonic hospital followed before he moved to Baltimore for
a residency in neurosurgery at Hopkins, in 1964. He became chief resident in neurosurgery
in 1969.
Uematsu, who was fond of Oriental gardening, maintained close ties to his cultural
heritage in frequent visits to Japan and in studies of Japanese history, art and culture.
He is survived by his wife, Janet; two sons, John and Ken; a daughter, Mika; a
grandson, Tyler. Also surviving are five brothers and one sister, all in Japan. Funeral services
will be held Saturday at the Hartsler-Guthermuth Funeral Home in Elkhardt, Ind. In lieu of
flowers, the family requests contributions be made to the Uematsu Skeletal Dysplasia Fund or the
Uematsu Memorial Research Fund at Hopkins hospital.