Renowned doctor, educator, author Dr. Patnam Siva Rama Krishna Rao dies at 100

Dr. Patnam Siva Rama Krishna Rao, veteran physician, teacher and author of the widely respected medical textbook ‘Differential Diagnoses and Medical Therapeutics’, passed away at his residence in Rajahmundry on May 18. He was 100.

With a career spanning seven decades, Dr. Rao left a lasting imprint on medical education and clinical practice in Andhra Pradesh and beyond. He studied and worked in Madras, Guntur, Kakinada and Visakhapatnam, earning a reputation for his rigorous clinical approach, commitment to teaching and compassionate patient care.

He served as an MD examiner for 18 medical colleges and trained nearly 3,000 undergraduate students during his academic career. Many of his postgraduate students went on to establish distinguished careers across India and abroad.

Apart from academics, Dr. Rao devoted himself to charitable medical service among economically disadvantaged communities. His research work was published in several medical journals, while his presentations at national and international conferences earned him wide recognition within the medical fraternity. He was also an active member of Lions Club India.

In his 99th year, he brought out the fifth edition of his textbook, ‘Differential Diagnoses and Medical Therapeutics’, regarded by generations of students and physicians as a practical guide to internal medicine.

Remembering him as an inspiring teacher and clinician, Dr. D. Raghunadharao, Founder Director of Homi Bhabha Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, Aganampudi, Visakhapatnam, said Dr. Rao was “an excellent teacher, a warm-hearted man and exceptionally kind to students”.

Recalling his clinical acumen, Dr. Raghunadharao said his ward rounds were “meticulous and thorough, exploring every possible angle of the disease”.

“He was a great diagnostician and always treated diagnosis as a challenge to be proved. Always courteous and friendly, he exuded confidence as a clinician,” he added.

Dr. N. Rama Koteswara Rao, Pathologist, MD, Chaitanya Medical Centre, Visakhapatnam, said: “If he is being remembered even after 50 years, it reflects the kind of doctor he was and the legacy he leaves behind. Many senior doctors in the city were once his students.”

Dr. Rao is survived by his two daughters, a son-in-law, four grandchildren, three grandchildren-in-law and five great-grandchildren.