Horace Smirk

Sir Frederick Horace Smirk (12 December 1902 – 18 May 1991) was a New Zealand professor of medicine and researcher in hypertension.

Early life and education Smirk was born in Accrington, Lancashire, England, in 1902. He attended Haslingden School and Victoria University of Manchester where he graduated with MBChB in 1925 and MD in 1927.

Career

After graduation Smirk received scholarships for research including a Beit fellowship which enabled him to do three years of research at University College London. There he worked with Thomas Lewis, John McMichael and T.R. Elliott who stimulated his interest in clinical and laboratory research. He continued his research into hypertension and arrhythmias for the rest of his career and had an international reputation. He was awarded two honorary doctorates: one from the Hahnemann Medical College in Philadelphia in 1961 and the other from the University of Otago in 1975. He received a Canada Gairdner International Award in 1965.

Personal life Smirk married Aileen Bamforth in Salford in 1931. They had three sons and one daughter.

He died on 18 May 1991 in Dunedin.

Selected publications

Restall, P.A., Smirk F.H. (1950). "The treatment of high blood pressure with hexamethonium iodide." N Z Med J. 49 (271):206-9. PMID: 15439685.

Smirk, F. H. (1957). High arterial pressure. Blackwell Scientific Publications.