[Advances in surgery and experimental surgery]

Innovations in surgery are closely related to experimental surgery and research. The later activity is developing in our country although it's level is not satisfactory. Important organisational innovations in surgery were made possible through the creation of the Medical Center at Ljubljana. This infrastructure with a numbere of important well organized units as the now Operating block. The Intensive Care Unit, the Emmergency Unit, the Burn Unit and with the necessary expert staff brought new therapeutcal possibilities and innovations in all special surgical fields (replantation of amputated fingers and limbs, microneurosurgery, free transfer of skin pedicles, etc.). New therapeutical measures in fluidotherepy, transfusion of blood and it's fractions, the control of shock, parenteral feeding, tube feeding and other measures of intensive treatment and rehabilitation brought new hopes for the severe and critically ill surgical patient. The importance of immediate operation and team approach to the polytraumatized patient is underlined. Experimental surgery is considered "conditio sine qua non" for the development of Yugoslav surgery and should be included as an integral part of the surgical activity.