A Acta Cirúrgica Brasileira celebra 25 anos: 1986-2011

Abstract

Acta Cirurgica Brasileira was born in 1986, dedicated to publish laboratory investigative surgery studies. What is research in surgery? Research always begins with a question. There are questions where one knows the answer. Others, where someone else knows the answer. And, those, where nobody knows the answer. Basically, research must be the process by which answer are found to questions where no answer exists and depends on asking the right questions. There are questions that can be answered in human beings and others cannot. The Helsinki Declaration is a crucial ethical landmark for clinical research involving human beings. There are limitations in research on humans. Scientific knowledge is gained through experience. Many times experience is gained through experiments in animals. These experiments are provoked by our desire to know. Evidence from experiments on humans is generally indirect. That from animals is more direct. But, animals are not human. All of these experiments have their value. Knowledge is the keyword, knowledge based on research.