Why is this work needed, and who would benefit from it? First of all, we must realize that this work is on a high but at the same time moderate level. The aim is to put together a Research Methods Handbook that can be of practical help to those writing manuscripts for submission to Arthroscopy and similar journals. We are referring to people working full time, taking care of patients, with busy outpatient clinics and fully booked surgical schedules. These are persons who do not devote the majority of their time to research. And in most cases they do not have any major training in scientific research methods. Since sound research methods are the backbone of a good study, the methods must be solid to ensure that the results are valid. If the methods are not good from the beginning, the outcome will not be good either, and the manuscript will not be published despite the investigator's best effort.