Dr. Louis Zimmerman, who practiced medicine in New York City for nearly half a century, died of an infection Saturday at St. Joseph Medical Center in Towson. He had moved to Baltimore in 1985 to be near his son. He was 92.

Dr. Zimmerman grew up in Brooklyn, N.Y., and earned his undergraduate and medical degrees at the University of Arkansas in the 1930s.

He joined the Army Reserve and was called to active duty in 1941. He served in combat in 1944 in a division under Gen. George Patton's 3rd Army that swept across France and fought in the Battle of the Bulge. He attained the rank of lieutenant colonel and was awarded two Bronze Stars.

Dr. Zimmerman had a private medical practice in New York for many years, and worked with the city's Public Health Service in the 1960s to fight tuberculosis. He was medical director of the United Wire Metal and Machine Union's medical center for seven years before retiring in 1984.

Dr. Zimmerman's wife of 56 years, the former Helen Helfstein, died in May. They had lived at Winthrop House on North Charles Street, and spent winters in Sarasota, Fla. Dr. Zimmerman enjoyed reading about the Civil War and was a regular visitor to the Roland Park branch of the Enoch Pratt Free Library. He also collected American art and enjoyed the opera.

Services will he held at noon today at Sol Levinson and Bros., 8900 Reisterstown Road, Pikesville.

He is survived by his son, Peter Max Zimmerman of Towson, and a daughter, Mindy Colton of Orlando, Fla.