By David Linzee
V. Leroy Young, M.D., a reconstructive and cosmetic surgeon, has been named the first William G. Hamm Professor of Plastic Surgery at Washington University School of Medicine. The chair was established by a bequest from Hamm, an alumnus and noted plastic surgeon who died in 1998.
"We are honored and thankful that Dr. Hamm remembered us in his will," said Mark S. Wrighton, Ph.D., chancellor of Washington University. "His splendid career was a credit to the University, and in creating an endowed chair he presented us with an asset of lasting value."
Hamm, a 1925 graduate of the School of Medicine, trained under Vilray P. Blair, M.D., professor of surgery and one of the founders of reconstructive plastic surgery. The two published a paper on the split thickness skin graft, which became a standard treatment for severe burns. Moving to Atlanta in the mid-1930s, Hamm became the first plastic and reconstructive surgeon in the Southeast.
During World War II, Hamm served as head of plastic surgery at St. Alban's Hospital in New York, where he treated wounded sailors and Marines. Returning to Atlanta after the war, he focused on adults with cancer of the face, mouth and jaws and children with congenital deformities. He also was professor emeritus of clinical surgery at Emory University.
"He had a deep, abiding interest in the welfare of his patients and a great love for his work. This commitment to Washington University was an investment in the future of the profession to which he dedicated his life," said Maurice J. Jurkiewicz, M.D., a colleague for many years.
William A. Peck, M.D., executive vice chancellor for medical affairs and dean of the School of Medicine, said, "Dr. Hamm's generosity makes it possible for us to acknowledge and support an eminent faculty member. V. Leroy Young has already had a long and distinguished career at the School of Medicine. We're confident he will make many more contributions in plastic surgery, as a clinician, researcher and teacher."
Young, who joined the faculty in 1980, is a leading expert on breast reconstruction and augmentation. He studies the properties of various breast implants to learn how long they last and whether they have potentially harmful long-term effects. Other research areas include the health benefits of breast reduction and liposuction. In 1999, he was first author of a report on the safety and effectiveness of ultrasound-assisted liposuction.
Young serves as chief of surgery at Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital. In addition to breast surgery and liposuction, his specialties include cosmetic and reconstructive facial surgery and skin cancer treatment. He serves on the American Society of Plastic Surgeons board of directors and is committee chair for the Silicone Implant Research Committee of the Plastic Surgery Education Foundation. He also is an examiner for the American Board of Plastic Surgery.
He earned his bachelor's degree in 1966 and his medical degree in 1970 from the University of Kentucky at Lexington. After serving in the U.S. Army, he completed two residencies in general surgery and in plastic surgery at the University of Kentuck from 1977-79.