title: Surgical history.
abstract: The importance of surgical history for surgeons and students of this field of knowledge is undeniable. Knowing surgical history makes us aware of findings and discoveries we never knew before. Surgical history helps us in defining how surgery evolved through the centuries and mostly how those observations have shaped surgical thought. In this writing, I introduce my own observations of the field and explain how I grew to learn and appreciate the evolution of surgical history through my own personal experience. And, as important, at least for me, I narrate my observations as to how my education and contributions to the discipline shaped my knowledge of surgical history.
authors.affiliation: Michigan State University, Kalamazoo Center for Medical Studies and Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Michigan, USA.
authors.forename: Luis H
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Toledo-Pereyra
mesh_terms: D004501:Education, Medical; D013502:General Surgery / Q000193:education / Q000266:history*; D049673:History, 20th Century; D049674:History, 21st Century; D006801:Humans; D013663:Teaching