摘要：The idea to start this journal was born several years ago. The birth of its first issue has followed a long and eventful pregnancy. The first and foremost consideration in the mind of the Editorial Board was the absence of a truly professional journal covering all aspects of human procreation in the lower countries of Europe. The Flemish Society for Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (VVOG) un- derwent a metamorphosis from a group of befriended colleagues meeting and eating around topics of common interest to a fully professional organisation with all that this implies: symposia, train- ing courses, postgraduate update courses, international congresses and much more in all the subdisciplines of our profession, i.e. peri- natal medicine and obstetrics, general gynaecology, reproductive medicine, senology and gynaecological oncology. What lacked in this ongoing process of development was a truly scientific journal. The challenge was and is huge. First, there is a journal already, ap- pearing on a regular basis, called Gunaikeia which has been and will continue to be a means of communication between members of the VVOG. However, its scope is local and its scientific ambi- tions very humble. It has played a pioneering role in the past where nothing at all existed. Second, the Dutch Journal for Obstetrics and Gynaecologist also exists in the Nether- lands. Therefore, the founders of the present journal needed time to be convinced of the need for a new journal with a very different vocation.
