Asbury, Arthur K., 1928-....

Arthur K. Asbury, Van Meter Professor of Neurology Emeritus, is one of the country's most noted neurologists, recognized for his clinical and experimental studies of peripheral neuropathies, particularly those related to chronic kidney failure, diabetes mellitus, and Guillain-Barré Syndrome. Dr. Asbury was born in 1928 in Cincinnati, Ohio. He received his bachelor's degree in agriculture from the University of Kentucky in 1951, and went on to study at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, receiving his M.D. in 1958. His postgraduate training included an internship and residency in medicine, neurology, and neuropathology at Massachusetts General Hospital, and a teaching fellowship at Harvard Medical School. From 1963 to 1965 he held a research and clinical fellowship in neuropathology at MGH and a research fellowship in neuropathology at Harvard Medical School.

In 1969 he was appointed Chief of the Neurology Service at the San Francisco Veteran's Administration Hospital. He had a concurrent appointment as professor of neurology and pathology and Vice Chair of the Department of Neurology at the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine. AT UCSF, he served on the Curriculum Committee and the Faculty Senate Committee on Educational Policy, and taught courses in neuropathology and neurological pathophysiology.

Dr. Asbury's tenure at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine began in 1973, when he was appointed Professor of Neurology and named chair of the Department of Neurology, a post he held until 1982. The following year he was appointed as the first Van Meter Professor of Neurology. In addition to his roles as clinician, researcher, and educator, Dr. Asbury held a several major administrative posts at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. In 1988 and 1989, he served as Acting Dean and Executive Vice President of the University of Pennsylvania Medical Center. In 1990 he was named to a three year term as Vice Dean for Research, and in 1993 he accepted a four year term as Vice Dean for Faculty Affairs. In 2000-2001, Dr. Asbury served again as interim Dean of the School of Medicine. He was an invited lecturer or visiting professor at many universities and neurological institutes throughout the country, and he participated in external department reviews of peer institutions' neurology departments.

Dr. Asbury has published extensively, with over 200 articles, chapters, and reviews in print. He has written or edited five monographs on peripheral neuropathies, and is one of the editors of the standard reference text in neurology, Diseases of the Nervous System, the third edition of which was published in 2002. He has served on editorial boards of Annals of Neurology, Muscle and Nerve, the Journal of Neurological Sciences, and a number of other journals focused on both research and clinical aspects of neurology. He was Chief Editor of Annals of Neurology from 1984 to 1992, Series Editor of the Blue Books of Practical Neurology from 1981 to 2004, and Presiding Senior Editor of Neurology UpToDate online from 2003 to 2005.

As a leader in neurological organizations, Dr. Asbury served as Vice President of the World Federation of Neurology, which sponsors the World Congress of Neurology every four years, and is Past President of the American Neurological Association, the Association of University Professors of Neurology, and the Philadelphia Neurological Society. He is former Chair of the World Federation of Neurology Research Group on Neuromuscular Diseases and currently serves as a trustee of the Monell Chemical Senses Center. He has played a significant part in the governance and administration of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia; he was elected a fellow of the College in 1974 and has been a trustee since 2002. From 2004 to 2006 he served as President of the College and in 2005-2006 he acted as interim CEO.

Dr. Asbury's scholarship has been widely recognized. He is a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences, and has served on the Council of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, London, by distinction. In 2004, the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine established the Arthur K. Asbury Award for Outstanding Faculty Mentoring, to be awarded annually. Other honors include the Daniel Drake Medal of the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, in addition to its Distinguished Graduate Award; Honorary Professor of Medical Sciences, Hebei Medical College and Hebei Province, PRC; the I.S. Ravdin Master Clinician Award of the University of Pennsylvania Health System; the Lindback Award of the University of Pennsylvania for Teaching Excellence; Lifetime Achievement Award of the World Federation of Neurology for his work in neuromuscular diseases; the Meritorious Service Award of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia; and Honorary Memberships in the American Neurological Association, the American Academy of Neurology, the American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine, the Association of British Neurologists, and the European Neurological Society.

Bibliography: University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Smell and Taste Center. Arthur K. Asbury curriculum vitae. Retrieved from http://www.med.upenn.edu/stc/docs/asbury_bio.pdf

Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers. Speaker's biography for Arthur K. Asbury, MD FRCP. Retrieved from http://www.mscare.org/cmsc/images/pdf/Dr.Asbury_Bio.pdf

From the guide to the Arthur K. Asbury papers, Bulk, 1985-2000, 1958-2007, (Historical Medical Library of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia)