Orthopaedic Surgeon, Hospital Cruz Vermelha
Lisbon, Portugal
Course President

A pioneer of circular Ilizarov techniques for deformity correction and distraction osteogenesis in Portugal, and a former President of ASAMI. He has over 45 years of experience treating severe bone defects and paediatric deformities. His work includes the development of the SAFE DualCore Biologically Active Nail and new revascularisation and arthrodiastasis techniques for Perthes' disease.

Orthopaedic Surgeon, Hospital Lusíadas Braga
Braga, Portugal
Course Coordinator

Dr. João Carvalho trained in the Ilizarov method under Prof. Maurizio Catagni at Mangioni Hospital in Lecco, Italy (2018). He also completed internships in limb lengthening and complex reconstruction at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, USA (2018), and in congenital deformity reconstruction at the Paley Institute in Florida, USA (2018). He has extensive experience in limb lengthening and complex reconstruction using Ilizarov techniques, particularly hexapod systems, as well as in paediatric orthopaedics and hip surgery.

President and Director of the Italian Society of External Fixation (S.I.F.E.).
Istituto Clinico Humanitas in Rozzano, Milan, and Istituto Ortopedico Galeazzi

Prof. Alexander Kirienko trained in Kurgan, Russia, under Prof. Gavriil Ilizarov and headed a department there before moving to Italy. He is internationally recognised for his expertise in complex foot and ankle deformities, nonunions and limb lengthening.

Medical Director, Paley Orthopedic & Spine Institute
St. Mary's Medical Center, West Palm Beach, FL, USA

Prof. Dror Paley is a world authority on deformity analysis and CORA (Center of Rotation of Angulation) principles. He pioneered the Multiplier Method and advanced motorised intramedullary lengthening techniques.

Professor Hiroyuki Tsuchiya is a leading expert in musculoskeletal oncology who has integrated the Ilizarov method with limb salvage surgery. His work on iodine-coated implants and caffeine-enhanced chemotherapy has advanced treatment in the field. As incoming President of WAIOT, he continues to champion biological reconstruction and mentor the next generation of surgeons.

Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, Vreden National Medical Research Center of Traumatology and Orthopedics, St. Petersburg, Russia

Director, ZEM-Germany (Limb Lengthening Center Munich), Munich, Germany

Prof. Rainer Baumgart is an internationally recognised expert in limb lengthening using fully implantable intramedullary nails. Appointed Associate Professor at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich in 2005, he has developed innovative lengthening systems and presented his research and clinical results at numerous international congresses.

Head of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Faculty of Medicine for Girls,          Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt

Prof. Yasser Elbatrawy established Egypt's first specialised university unit dedicated to deformity correction, limb lengthening and reconstruction.He co-founded ASAMI International with Prof. Maurizio Catagni. He is the founder and current Vice-President of ASAMI-Egypt, and a founding member of both the Egyptian Pediatric Orthopedic Society (EGPOS) and the Middle East Pediatric Orthopedic Society (MEPOS). He currently chairs the SICOT Disaster Committee, has been an AO member since 1996 and is an active member of the AAOS, which named him Doctor of the Month in May 2023.