Professor V P Kumar specialises in disorders of the shoulder as well as general orthopaedics. His special areas of interest are the care and rehabilitation of injuries to the shoulder, elbow and he also specialises in the treatment of degenerative disorders of shoulder.

Prof Kumar completed his medical degree at the University of Singapore in 1974. After completing his National Service in 1977, he underwent his training in Orthopaedic Surgery at the University Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at the Singapore General Hospital as well as at the University of Toronto, Canada, University of Glasgow, United Kingdom and at the Alfred I Du Pont Institution in Wilmington Delaware USA. He joined the National University of Singapore and the National University Hospital in 1980 as a Lecturer and he was appointed a full Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery in 2002.

Prof Kumar is actively involved in medical student teaching at NUS. He was the Director for Advanced Orthopaedic and Hand Surgery training at NUH. He is also the Co-Research Director of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at NUS. He is a member of the Singapore Orthopaedic Association, the Singapore Medical Association, and the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine. He is also a Founder member of the Asian Shoulder Association. Prof Kumar is the author of over 80 scientific research articles, and 10 book chapters. He is an Associate Editor for the American Journal of Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons.

Some of his research interests over the years are listed below:

• Factors in the stability of the shoulder joint with reference to role of atmospheric pressure

• Role of long head of biceps tendon

• Neuromuscular compartments in mammalian skeletal muscles

• Intramuscular innervation pattern in skeletal muscles