Yves Cotrel

Distinctions :

Officier de la Légion d’Honneur

Commandeur de l’Ordre National de la Couronne de Chêne du Grand Duché de Luxembourg

Yves Cotrel was born on April 27th, 1925 in Dinan (Côtes d’Armor, France), where he attended the « Ecole des Cordeliers » high school. He obtained his M.D. from the Faculté de Médecine de Paris (Medical Faculty) in 1950.

He qualified as an orthopedic surgeon in 1953. From 1953 to 1977, he was the Head of the orthopedic and spinal surgery department at the Institut Calot (Berck), and from 1977 to 1991, consulting surgeon for the Luxemburg Health Ministry (Ministère de la Santé Publique et de la Population)

In 1958, he won the Eisendrath Grant from the faculté de Médecine de Paris which enabled him to undertake a 6 month long educational trip to the United States to study the current American treatments for spinal deformities. When he came back to France, he elaborated and implemented new orthopedic corrective techniques. Over 200 patients suffering from scoliosis were then hospitalized in his unit at the institut calot.

In 1964, he won the « entretiens de Bichat » Award for his movie « Traitement de la scoliose idiopathique » (treatment of idiopathic scoliosis). In 1965, he got the Second Prize of the University Educational International Film Festival in Buenos Aires.

Up to 1975, he continued developing orthopedic and surgical techniques, which were very quickly evaluated as they were implemented on a great number of patients. With these techniques, national and international recognition were acquired.

In 1975, he was the Harrington Guest Lecturer to the Scoliosis Research Society (S.R.S.) congress in Ottawa, where he introduced his « New correction and fusion techniques for idiopathic scoliosis».

Unfortunately, at that time, due to health problems, Yves Cotrel was suddenly forced to stop all of his professional activities.

In 1983 after 3 years of research, he created and implemented an implantable surgical instrumentation which ensured the three-dimensional correction of spinal deformities as well as the immediate stabilization of the spine, while enabling an early post-surgical standing position, with no external cast or brace support.

This new instrumentation method was developed with Professor Jean Dubousset, from the Hôpital Saint Vincent de Paul, Paris. It was quickly adopted worldwide.

Yves Cotrel holds 21 patents.

In 1985, for a second time, he was the Harrington Guest Lecturer of the S.R.S congress, in Amsterdam, where he presented « 40 years of treatment of idiopathic scoliosis ».

Co-founder, Head of the Clinical research department (1969-1977) and, since 1989, President of the Board of the “Institut de Recherche sur les Maladies du Squelette” (Skeleton Disease Research Institute).

Founder of the « Chaire Universitaire Marie-Lou et Yves Cotrel de Recherche en Chirurgie Orthopédique de l’Université » in Montreal, Canada (1995).

Author of several scientific books and publications, conferences and presentations all over the world.

Honorary member of several orthopedic and traumatology foreign societies.

In 1989, together with Pr Jean Dubousset, Yves Cotrel received the World Award of Surgery from Geneva University,

And in 1999, the Gold Medal of the Institut de France for his contribution to medical research.