Gian Salzman is a knee and cartilage repair surgeon at the Schulthess Clinic, Zurich, Switzerland.
As a clinician-scientist, he is optimally positioned to observe first-hand the limitations of current cartilage repair procedures and will help towards translation from bench-to-bedside. During his dissertation, he investigated the use of gene therapy and mechanical loading on articular chondrocytes in small animal models.
Other early projects included experimental work with osteoblasts and antibiotics. Parallel to his residency, he continued experimental research to improve the quality of chondrocytes and stem cells for use in clinical applications. Novel tools, such as quantitative imaging, to follow-up on patients were introduced and applied effectively.
His research has resulted in more than 60 peer-reviewed publications and 100 talks. Gian has on-going collaborations in the US (UNC, Professor Spang), Croatia (Professor Ivcovic), Switzerland (Davos: Professor Alini, Basel: Professor Martin), and Germany (Professors Sudkamp and Niemeyer). He is a co-organizer of the “Freiburger Knorpeltage”, an annual meeting of cartilage repair specialists.