Dr. Stephen Unger is one of the longest-tenured surgeons at Mount Sinai, practicing general and vascular surgery. He joined the practice of his father, Dr. Harold M. Unger in 1982 and was joined in practice by his son, Joshua Mostkoff Unger in 2012.

A native of Miami Beach, Dr. Unger attended Columbia College in New York and Duke University Medical School. He completed an internship in pathology at Duke University Hospital and then completed both a surgical residency and a research fellowship in surgical oncology at the University of Virginia.

Dr. Unger is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons, and an active member of the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES), where he serves as Vice President of the organization’s Research and Education Foundation. At Mount Sinai, Dr. Unger is Vice Chairman of the Surgical Service Review Committee, and served on both the Medical Executive Committee and the medical advisory board to the Board of Trustees.

Dr. Unger has worked to develop a patient-centered surgical department that offers the latest surgical techniques and practice evidence-based, state-of-the-art surgery. He was the first surgeon at Mount Sinai to perform many minimally invasive procedures, including percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy tube placement, laparoscopic cholecystectomy (removal of the gallbladder), laparoscopic treatment of common bile duct stones and laparoscopic placement of peritoneal dialysis catheter. Dr. Unger has also published extensively in the field of minimally invasive surgery.

In his general surgery practice, Dr. Unger performs both open and minimally invasive operations focusing on gall bladder and hernia procedures. Also a skilled vascular surgeon, Dr. Unger utilizes open and minimally invasive techniques to treat diseases of the arteries and veins, including endovascular surgery to treat aortic aneurysms. Additionally, he has a special interest in helping dialysis patients increase the efficiency of their treatments. Dr. Unger has also spent 15 years developing new approaches to creating and preserving arteriovenous fistulas that maximize the amount of blood cleansed during dialysis treatments.

Dr. Unger is also an active member of Temple Beth Shalom, where he has held various leadership positions throughout the years.

*This physician is employed by Mount Sinai Medical Center