Activity Log

This week I attended the Swiss ArthroWrist Course in Lucerne (Switzerland), organised by Dr. Ivan Tami and sponsored by Arthrex. Two days of hands-on wrist arthroscopy, covering useful topics ranging from portal placement to practical surgical techniques.

The programme alternated short lectures with supervised cadaver sessions, live demonstrations and case discussions and working in small groups left plenty of time at the table under supervision. Was great!

#HandSurgery #WristArthroscopy #Arthroscopy #SurgicalEducation

Last week I was in Las Vegas for DEF CON 34, the largest cybersecurity conference in the world, where I presented DarkSyringe at the Biohacking Village.

DarkSyringe is a research project I've been working on for the past 18 months. As AI steps into the relationship between a doctor and a patient, the more capable these tools become, the more new attack surfaces open up. Some of them we had never seen before, and in healthcare a mistake costs a lot. The project exposes exactly those vulnerabilities, at the interface between our clinical work and AI systems.

Presenting at the Biohacking Village meant a lot. The conversations after the talk, with security researchers and with some of the people who actually build medical devices, gave me even more reasons to keep going.

One more thing made this edition special: a track I produced on synthesisers was picked for the official DEF CON 34 soundtrack, which earned me an artist badge. All proceeds from the soundtrack will be donated to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), which makes being part of it even more meaningful.

Thanks to the Biohacking Village for having me. More work ahead.

Another day discussing the opportunities and challenges of implementing AI-powered tools and the associated risks in hand surgery at the European Hand Surgery Conference (FESSH) in Basel. Many thanks to all the colleagues for the engaging panel and thoughtful discussion.

Two very enjoyable days at the #UEMS meeting in Leuven, Belgium. We contributed to the meeting with presentations on #cybersecurity in #healthcare and the fundamentals of transformer-based AI models.

On March 16 I'll be joining this interesting event part of the Innosuisse Entrepreneurship Training and organised collaboration with Swiss Healthcare Startups and USZ Health Innovation Hub.

I'm really looking forward to an honest discussion about what actually works in clinical settings, what doesn't scale, and why. AI in healthcare needs fewer headlines and more real conversations. Happy to hear different perspectives especially the uncomfortable ones.

Last week I spent a few days in the beautiful mountains of Zermatt at Handzermatt 2026. It was a great congress, full of interesting people, great discussions, and a relaxed atmosphere, with surgeons from over 18 countries coming together to share ideas and perspectives, especially around new technologies and innovation.

As for me, I spoke about safety in the use of LLMs in medicine (presenting some research with rather scary insights), and a new tool to support doctors built around privacy and cybersecurity. I truly believe that exchanging perspectives across healthcare, cybersecurity, and IT unlocks real value, especially in times like these.

In November, I took part in the 2025 Congress of Schweizerische Gesellschaft für Handchirurgie held in Lugano, where I delivered a talk on the risks associated with the use of large language models in medicine and introduced a toolkit designed to analyse these threats.

As the need for tools that make our practice more efficient and less burdened by bureaucracy continues to grow, it is essential not to turn a blind eye to the potential dangers. As physicians, we must balance enthusiasm for the benefits these technologies offer with a clear awareness of the risks they may entail. Only in this way can we truly integrate them responsibly into our professional lives.

This year I had the chance to see a quantum computer up close at ETH Zurich. What I appreciated most about the ETH Quantum Center is how grounded the work feels. Quantum computing there isn't presented as a breakthrough just around the corner, but as a difficult, still immature technology that requires a lot of careful engineering.

Seeing the labs and the hardware makes it clear how much effort goes into keeping these systems alive. It's early days, but it's definitely something worth watching.

Last week, I attended DEF CON 33 in Las Vegas, one of the most prominent hacker events globally, focusing on the latest trends and innovations in cybersecurity ranging from healthcare to aerospace.

At the Biohacking Village we could explore and test the security of some crucial deployed medical devices and discuss the most relevant ongoing subjects in the field. With the increasing integration of hospital systems and connected medical devices, these topics can no longer be ignored by healthcare professionals due to their potential impact on patient safety and care.

What impressed me most was the community of 30,000 people, united by a common curiosity for cybersecurity, inclusive and willing to share.

(PS. I also saw a small replica of Venice, one of my favorite cities in the world).

After almost two years, my journey at USZ comes to an end. These have been intense years that have helped me grow and pushed me beyond my limits. Every case, every patient, every procedure has taught me something that no book could have conveyed.

I thank the team that accompanied me from the beginning: Prof. Maurizio Calcagni and PD Dr. Inga Besmens and all the teachers and colleagues who shared this journey. Special thanks to Prof. Pietro Giovanoli, Dr. Simon Roner and Dr. Olga Politikou for their support and for giving me the opportunity to combine my passion for medicine and informatics at ETH.

Medicine is listening, patience and respect for every story behind every procedure.

Thank you for everything.

This year the city of Rotterdam hosted the European Board of Hand Surgery examination, followed by the European Hand Surgery Congress. At the European examination, which was attended by more than 100 candidates, Dr. Giesen had the honor of serving as examiner. The "best examination" award was given to a candidate from Singapore.

In addition, the European congress provided an important opportunity to exchange news in the field, fostering new European connections and strengthening old friendships internationally. Here, SOS Mano presented a new microsurgical technique for complex upper limb reconstruction.

On Monday, I participated in the first wrist symposium in Switzerland, which focused on wrist surgery, especially arthrodesis and wrist prostheses. Along with Dr. Efe Akyildiz, we briefly reviewed the literature on wrist prostheses.

I want to thank Prof. Maurizio Calcagni and Dr. Inga Besmens for their guidance in preparing the discussion. Additionally, thank Dr. Ole Reigstad for participating and providing his perspective on such a dynamic subject.

This week I attended the Zurich Hand Flaps Course 2024 at Irchel University. This is a comprehensive hands-on course that provides a valuable overview of hand and forearm flaps and the principles of tendon repair. On Thursday and Friday we continued with the IBRA course focusing on fracture management.

It was an intense and very educational week and I would recommend the course to anyone interested in being fully immersed in the world of hand surgery with outstanding teachers.

Ringraziamo la rivista Ticino Management per questa breve intervista in cui abbiamo raccontato il nostro punto di vista sulla telemedicina e la sua evoluzione. Grazie anche al Dr. Davide Golinelli per aver contribuito condividendo la sua preziosa esperienza.