Informed consent: its importance for retrolective research and medical science progress

In retrolective research, the information necessary to answer the research question is directly generated from medical records and other clinical-documentary sources. This article analyzes the waiver of informed consent and privacy notice when research is retrolective, from which two lines of argument emerge: one is the physician's duty to protect patient dignity, integrity, right to self-determination and privacy, as well as the confidentiality of the information obtained from him; the other is retrolective research contribution to the control of diseases and society's health improvement. Waiver of informed consent or privacy notice documented in the medical record is important for retrolective research, but it has ethical implications for researchers who do not comply with the rationality and personal responsibility they have before society.

Automated summary

This article discusses the waiver of informed consent and privacy notice in retrolective research, focusing on the physician's duty to patients and the contribution of retrolective research to disease control and public health improvement. Waiver of informed consent documented in medical records is crucial for retrolective research, but researchers must also consider the ethical implications of not complying with rationality and personal responsibility in society.