BIOGRAPHY

Dr. Walter Unger has been transplanting hair since 1967.  In 1974 he limited his private practice entirely to this field and began a long career of not only practicing it in Toronto and New York but also teaching it.  He is currently Clinical Professor at Mt. Sinai Medical School, New York; Visiting Professor at Johns Hopkins Medical School, Baltimore, MD; and Associate Professor (Medicine) at the University of Toronto.  He is, in addition, the Director of the Cosmetic Dermatologic Surgery Program at Mt. Sinai Medical School in New York and Co-Director of a similar program at the University of Toronto.  

In addition to his academic and clinical work, Dr. Unger is the author of chapters on hair transplantation in 27 medical texts, has published numerous articles in medical journals and has been invited to deliver scientific papers at medical meetings throughout the world over the last 30 years. The latest edition (2004)of  his textbook, Hair Transplantation, is considered the standard reference text for hair transplant surgeons. 

In 1995, Dr. Unger was the recipient of the highest clinical award given to hair transplant surgeons by the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery — The Golden Follicle Award and in 2003 received The Manfred Lucas Award "for outstanding contributions to the field of Hair Restoration Surgery" from the same society. He continues to be one of only a few physicians recommended for hair transplanting in the consumer’s reference books, “The Best Doctors in America” and “The Hair Replacement Revolution”.

Dr. Unger is a member of the executive committee of The American Board of Hair Restoration Surgery, the Medical Standards Committee for Dermatologic Surgery for the Ontario College of Physicians and Surgeons, and serves as Chairman of the task force on Medical Standards for Hair Transplantation Surgery for the American Academy of Dermatology.  In addition, he belongs to and has served on the Boards of many other professional organizations.

The following is extracted from a profile article written by Dr. Richard Shiell, editor, for Hair Transplant Forum International, the official publication of the International Society for Hair Restoration Surgery.

When the history of hair restoration surgery is written in future years, the outstanding giant of our profession in this first half century will most likely not be a Japanese pioneer or some North American surgical entrepreneur, but Walter P. Unger, MD, a dermatologist from Toronto, Canada.

His talents have shone like a beacon for over 20 years and his influence has been immense. We have all bathed in his illuminating insights while we avidly read his three books, 26 textbook chapters, and innumerable scientific papers.

Walter was born on April 8th, 1939 in Toronto, Canada, the son of Polish immigrant Harry Unger and his wife Mary. Harry was a cutter in the clothing industry, a job which entails considerable skill and a good eye and Walter jokingly speculates that perhaps his artistry and skill with the scalpel comes from this source.

Walter was educated at a public high school in Toronto and went on to the University of Toronto where he graduated from its medical school in 1963. He interned at New Mt. Sinai Hospital in Toronto in 1964 and did postgraduate studies at St. John's Hospital, London, England in 1965 and the Skin Cancer Hospital, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he was Chief Resident in 1967. He did a residency in internal medicine at Sunnybrook Hospital Toronto in 1968 and obtained his Canadian Fellowship in Dermatology in that year. This was followed by his certification by the American Board of Dermatology in the same year.

He started performing hair transplant surgery in 1967 after receiving instruction on the techniques of the time from Dr. Norman Orentreich in New York. However, he cites Sam Ayres, Jr., of Beverly Hills, California, as his principal inspiration. Although he never saw him perform a single operation, Walter heard him lecture on many occasions and was greatly impressed by his obsessive attention to detail and outstanding results.

In a period when hair transplant results were equivocal at best, Dr. Unger's work was soon outstanding. Meetings were infrequent during the 70's, but Dr. Unger's lectures stood out for their clarity and his refusal to compromise his standards. Indeed Walter, with his perfectionist nature and refusal to "suffer fools gladly", does not make friends easily. Nevertheless, he does not lack those who have been willing to follow his methods and those who do are all the better for it.

Walter comments, "I would like to give credit to some of the many 'fathers' of hair transplantation with whom I held innumerable discussions over the years. These include Hiram Sturm, Blu Stough, Leonard Lewis, O'Tar Norwood, Richard Shiell, Tom Alt, Pierre Pouteaux, Rolf Nordstrom, and many others. There was a healthy and helpful camaraderie in the field of hair transplantation in the early years and I think all of us benefited from that enormously. I visited many offices and I think I learned something every time."

Walter's first paper on the subject of hair transplantation was published in the Journal of the Canadian Medical Association in 1971. He published his first textbook "Hair Transplantation" in 1979 and there have been two subsequent editions in 1988 and 1995. This huge work of 830 pages is regarded as an encyclopedia on hair restoration practice.

Walter spent a great deal of time investigating the use of lasers for the creation of recipient sites for hair transplantation.  He set about this in his usual methodical, scientific approach, and while he was seen by some as the champion of the laser, he was, in reality, trying to be strictly objective.  Many others were led by commercial pressures to make excessive claims for the laser, but Walter refused to be drawn to hyperbole.  In early 1998 he finally announced that he was setting aside further work on the laser until better technology was available.