Born in Wellington, New Zealand, Arthur Uglow served as a private soldier in the AIF from 1917 to 1919 and then studied medicine at the University of Melbourne. After graduation in 1924 he spent a year in practice at Albany, Western Australia and then entered general practice in Rutherglen, Victoria, where he remained for over seven years before moving in 1932 to Colac.

His practice included some radiology, and in 1939 he took the first move towards specialising in diagnostic radiology by taking the diploma course at University of Melbourne. He was successful in the examination that followed and was awarded the DDR in December 1939. He then sat for and passed the MRACP examination in April 1940. The War interrupted any plans he had for change.

Uglow, who had joined the peacetime AAMC reserve as a medical officer, enlisted in the RAAF and served from 1940 to 1946 as a physician with the rank of squadron leader. During this time he took the course in tropical medicine at University of Sydney and was awarded the Diploma. He was made a Fellow of the Royal College of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene in 1945.

After discharge from the Air Force he resumed his general practice at Colac until 1950 when he left clinical work to take up radiology. He had an appointment as a clinical assistant in radiotherapy at Royal Melbourne Hospital from 1950 to 1952 and was a junior associate at the Peter MacCallum Institute. He also had an appointment as specialist radiologist at Repatriation General Hospital, Heidelberg and worked in the practice of Dr Douglas Thomas and associates. At the time of his death he was living in Vermont, Victoria.