Paul Gerson Unna, was a German physician specialized in dermatology and one of the pioneers in dermatopathology.

Paul Unna was the son of Moritz Adolph Unna, a physician

Physician

A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...

 from Hamburg

Hamburg

-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...

. Unna was educated at the Gelehrtenschule des Johanneums

Gelehrtenschule des Johanneums

The Gelehrtenschule des Johanneums is a Gymnasium in Hamburg, Germany. It is Hamburg's oldest school and was founded in 1529 by Johannes Bugenhagen. The school's motto is The Future needs a Heritage...

. He began to study medicine

Medicine

Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....

 at the University of Heidelberg, but had to interrupt it in order to fight in the Franco-Prussian war

Franco-Prussian War

The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...

, where he was severely wounded. In 1871, he resumed his studies in Heidelberg and later went to the University of Leipzig

University of Leipzig

The University of Leipzig , located in Leipzig in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, is one of the oldest universities in the world and the second-oldest university in Germany...

, finally attaining a doctorate

Doctorate

A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...

 under Prof. Anatol Waldeyer in Strasbourg

Strasbourg

Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...

. His doctoral work was on the subject of the histology

Histology

Histology is the study of the microscopic anatomy of cells and tissues of plants and animals. It is performed by examining cells and tissues commonly by sectioning and staining; followed by examination under a light microscope or electron microscope...

 and development of the epidermis, and was published in 1876. The thesis contained a set of new ideas and aspects that were met with hard criticism. They were accepted only after some corrections were made.

He went on to receive his training in dermatology in Vienna

Vienna

Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...

, where he worked in cooperation with Ferdinand von Hebra

Ferdinand Ritter von Hebra

Ferdinand Ritter von Hebra was an Austrian physician and dermatologist,...

, Moritz Kaposi and Heinrich Auspitz

Heinrich Auspitz

Heinrich Auspitz was an Austrian dermatologist. Trained at the University of Vienna, he specialised in dermatology and syphilis...

, among others.

After his return to Hamburg, Unna started working in the clinical practice of his father, then in the Sankt Georg

St. Georg, Hamburg

St. Georg is a central quarter in the borough Hamburg-Mitte of Hamburg, Germany. In 2006 the population was 10,551.-History:In 1410 the articles 17 and 18 of a contract between the Senate and the citizens were regulating the accommodation of the patients in the hospital St. Georg . This hospital...

 Hospital. Unna's main interest resided on dermatology: he opened his own practice for skin diseases in Hamburg in 1881, and later opened the Dermatologikum private dermatological hospital in Hamburg Eimsbüttel

Eimsbüttel (quarter)

Eimsbüttel is one of the 105 quarters in the Eimsbüttel borough of Hamburg, Germany. In 2006 the population was 54,702.-History:On March 1, 2008 the Eimsbüttel quarter lost a part of its area to form the quarter Sternschanze in the borough Altona....

, so that he could concentrate entirely on the field, beginning in 1884. In that year, Unna published his first book, Histopathologie der Hautkrankheiten (Histopathology of Skin Diseases), which exposed the entire knowledge in the field at that time and which made him one of the most prominent dermatologists of his time. Besides describing all known skin diseases, Unna proposed new therapies. Among the innovations, in 1886 he proposed the use of ichthyol

Ichthyol

Ammonium bituminosulfonate is a product of natural origin obtained in the first step by dry distillation of sulfur-rich oil shale. It is used in medicine as a remedy for treating some skin diseases, such as acne, eczema and psoriasis...

 and resorcinol

Resorcinol

Resorcinol is a dihydroxy benzene. It is the 1,3-isomer of benzenediol with the formula C6H42.-Nomenclature:Benzene-1,3-diol is the name recommended by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry in its 1993 Recommendations for the Nomenclature of Organic Chemistry.-Production:It is...

 against skin diseases.

He investigated the biochemical processes of the skin and was the first to describe the stratum granulosum

Stratum granulosum

The stratum granulosum is a thin layer of cells in the epidermis. Keratinocytes migrating from the underlying stratum spinosum become known as granular cells in this layer...

. In 1894 he introduced layer projection as a method for skin investigations.

In 1907 he received the title of professor from the Hamburg senate, and in the following year he became the chief physician of the Eppendorf

Eppendorf, Hamburg

Eppendorf is one of thirteen quarters in the Hamburg-Nord borough of Hamburg, Germany, and lies north of the Außenalster. In 2007 the population was 23,021.-History:...

 hospital. In 1919 he became a professor at the University of Hamburg

University of Hamburg

The University of Hamburg is a university in Hamburg, Germany. It was founded on 28 March 1919 by Wilhelm Stern and others. It grew out of the previous Allgemeines Vorlesungswesen and the Kolonialinstitut as well as the Akademisches Gymnasium. There are around 38,000 students as of the start of...

, receiving the first chair for dermatology.

In 1927 he described for the first time what was to be called Unna's disease, a chronic disease of the skin with seborrhea of the scalp

Scalp

The scalp is the anatomical area bordered by the face anteriorly and the neck to the sides and posteriorly.-Layers:It is usually described as having five layers, which can conveniently be remembered as a mnemonic:...

 and of the areas in the face and trunk that are rich in sebaceous follicles. Also, a compression gauze used to treat venous leg problems is named Unna's boot

Unna's boot

In medicine, an Unna boot is a special gauze bandage, which can be used for the treatment of venous stasis ulcers and other venous insufficiencies of the leg. It can also be used as a supportive bandage for sprains and strains of the foot, ankle and lower leg...

.

For many years Unna cooperated closely with the pharmacist Paul Carl Beiersdorf

Paul Carl Beiersdorf

Paul Carl Beiersdorf was a German pharmacist from Neuruppin, Brandenburg. He was founder of Beiersdorf AG in Hamburg....

. The street in Hamburg where the Beiersdorf

Beiersdorf

Beiersdorf AG is a multinational corporation based in Hamburg, Germany, manufacturing personal care products. Its brands include Elastoplast, Eucerin , Labello, and Nivea....

company is located is named Unnastrasse in his honor.

External links

• Paul Gerson Unna. WhoNamedIt.