Stuart H. Ralston MD, FRCP, FMedSci, FRSE

Stuart H. Ralston graduated in Medicine from Glasgow University in 1978 and underwent higher medical training in General Internal Medicine and Rheumatology. He previously held the chair of Medicine and Bone Metabolism at the University of Aberdeen and moved to Edinburgh University in 2005, where he now holds the Arthritis Research UK Chair of Rheumatology. He is currently the director of Edinburgh University's online distance learning MSc in clinical trials and was the director of Edinburgh Clinical Trials Unit between 2009 and 2016.

Ralston holds an honorary consultant rheumatologist position with NHS Lothian, where he is clinical lead for the osteoporosis service and clinical director of the rheumatology service. Professor Ralston has researched widely on the molecular and genetic basis of osteoporosis and other bone and joint diseases. He has a special interest in the pathogenesis and management of Paget’s disease of bone. He is joint editor-in-chief of Calcified Tissue International and an editor of Davidson's Principles and Practice of Medicine.

Ralston was chair of the SIGN 142 guideline group on the Management of Osteoporosis and Prevention of Fragility Fractures in 2015 and 2021, and chairs one of the working groups of the Osteoporosis and Bone Research Academy for the Royal Osteoporosis Society. He was chair of the Commission for Human Medicines (CHM) for the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Authority (MHRA) between 2013 and 2021, during which time the CHM advised that the Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna, and AstraZeneca vaccines should be approved for emergency use in the UK. He continues to act as an advisor to CHM on matters related to Medicines for Women’s Health and Rheumatology.