1. Point/Counterpoint

   • D. H. Birkett

   Editorial 12 January 2004 Pages: 181 - 181

2. Current status of laparoscopic gastrectomy for cancer in Japan

   • S. Kitano
   • N. Shiraishi

   Review article 29 December 2003 Pages: 182 - 185

3. Current therapy for nonvariceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding

   • J. M. Blocksom
   • S. Tokioka
   • C. Sugawa

   Review article 21 November 2003 Pages: 186 - 192

4. Experience with over 3,000 open and laparoscopic bariatric procedures: Multivariate analysis of factors related to leak and resultant mortality

   • A. Z. Fernandez Jr
   • E. J. DeMaria
   • H. J. Sugerman

   Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 193 - 197

5. The Lap-Band system in the United States: One surgeon’s experience with 271 patients

   • H. Spivak
   • F. Anwar
   • A. Onn

   Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 198 - 202

   

6. Safety and feasibility of revisional laparoscopic surgery for morbid obesity: conversion of open silastic vertical banded gastroplasty to laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding

   • N. Gavert
   • A. Szold
   • S. Abu-Abeid

   Original article 21 November 2003 Pages: 203 - 206

7. Repair of ventral hernias in morbidly obese patients undergoing laparoscopic gastric bypass should not be deferred

   • G. M. Eid
   • S. G. Mattar
   • P. R. Schauer

   Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 207 - 210

8. In vivo studies comparing the biocompatibility of various polypropylene meshes and their handling properties during endoscopic total extraperitoneal (TEP) patchplasty: an experimental study in pigs

   • H. Scheidbach
   • C. Tamme
   • F. Köckerling

   Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 211 - 220

   

9. Perioperative outcomes and complications of open vs laparoscopic extraperitoneal inguinal hernia repair in a mature surgical practice

   • E. R. Winslow
   • M. Quasebarth
   • L. M. Brunt

   Original article 21 November 2003 Pages: 221 - 227

   

10. Laparoscopic extraperitoneal approach to acutely incarcerated inguinal hernia

    • G. Ferzli
    • K. Shapiro
    • S. Patel

    Original article 26 November 2003 Pages: 228 - 231

    

11. Bile duct injuries during laparoscopic cholecystectomy: a 1994–2001 audit on 13,718 operations in the area of Rome

    • P. Gentileschi
    • M. Di Paola
    • T. Zanarini

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 232 - 236

    

12. Laparoscopy for appendicitis and cholelithiasis during pregnancy: a new standard of care

    • M. D. Rollins
    • K. J. Chan
    • R. R. Price

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 237 - 241

    

13. Open and laparoscopic appendectomy are equally safe and acceptable in children

    • T. Oka
    • A. G. Kurkchubasche
    • F. I. Luks

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 242 - 245

14. Protection of trocar sites from gallbladder cancer implantation by sodium hyaluronate shill carboxymethylcellulose–based bioresorbable membrane (Seprafilm) in a nurine model

    • T. Sasaki
    • H. Shimura
    • S. Ikeda

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 246 - 251

    

15. Laparoscopic treatment of enteric fistulas

    • J. P. Regan
    • B. A. Salky

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 252 - 254

16. Comparison of the effects of gasless procedure, CO₂-pneumoperitoneum, and laparotomy on splenic and hepatic natural killer activity in a rat model

    • I. Takeuchi
    • H. Ishida
    • D. Hashimoto

    Original article 21 November 2003 Pages: 255 - 260

    

17. Comparative results of endoluminal gastroplasty and laparoscopic antireflux surgery for the treatment of GERD

    • R. Chadalavada
    • E. Lin
    • C. D. Smith

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 261 - 265

    

18. Does the learning phase influence the late outcome of patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease after laparoscopic fundoplication?

    • S. Contini
    • C. Scarpignato

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 266 - 271

    

19. Laparoscopic splenectomy for lymphoproliferative disease

    • R. M. Walsh
    • F. Brody
    • N. Brown

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 272 - 275

20. Laparoscopic vs open resection for the treatment of diverticular disease

    • R. Gonzalez
    • C. D. Smith
    • B. J. Ramshaw

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 276 - 280

21. Laparoscopic total mesorectal excision (TME) for rectal cancer surgery: long-term outcomes

    • J. Leroy
    • F. Jamali
    • J. Marescaux

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 281 - 289

    

22. Experience with the use of tissue adhesives in pediatric endoscopic surgery

    • C. Esposito
    • R. Damiano
    • A. Centonze

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 290 - 292

    

23. Pneumoperitoneum impairs blood flow and augments tumor growth in the abdominal wall

    • O. Lundberg
    • A. Kristoffersson

    OriginalPaper 29 December 2003 Pages: 293 - 296

    

24. Surgical treatment of pancreatic insulinomas in the era of laparoscopy

    • C. -Y. Lo
    • W. -F. Chan
    • P.-K.-H. Tam

    OriginalPaper 12 January 2004 Pages: 297 - 302

    

25. Laparoscopic treatment of choledocholithiasis using modified biliary stents

    • E. K. Kim
    • S. K. Lee

    Original article 12 January 2004 Pages: 303 - 306

    

26. Laparoscopic needle catheter jejunostomy: modification of the technique and outcome results

    • M. Senkal
    • J. Koch
    • V. Zumtobel

    Original article 08 January 2004 Pages: 307 - 309

    

27. The effects of staging laparoscopy on trocar site and peritoneal recurrence of pancreatic cancer

    • V. Velanovich

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 310 - 313

    

28. Synchronous bilateral endoscopic adrenalectomy: experiences after 18 operations

    • E. Jäger
    • A. Heintz
    • T. Junginger

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 314 - 318

    

29. Toward totally endoscopic coronary artery surgery

    • R. H. J. Trimlett
    • A. C. De Souza
    • J. R. Pepper

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 319 - 322

    

30. Determinants of competency judgments by experienced laparoscopic surgeons

    • G. L. Adrales
    • M. B. Donnelly
    • A. E. Park

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 323 - 327

    

31. Validity and reliability of a virtual reality upper gastrointestinal simulator and cross validation using structured assessment of individual performance with video playback

    • K. Moorthy
    • Y. Munz
    • A. Darzi

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 328 - 333

    

32. Laparoscopic versus open appendectomy: What is the real difference? Results of a prospective randomized double-blinded trial

    • R. C. Ignacio
    • R. Burke
    • P. A. Lucha

    Original article 29 December 2003 Pages: 334 - 337

    

33. How should Barrett’s ulceration be treated?

    • J. H. Peters
    • K. K. Wang

    Point/Counterpoint 12 January 2004 Pages: 338 - 344

34. Retroperitoneal actinomycosis due to dropped gallstones

    • J. M. Ramia
    • A. Mansilla
    • J. A. Ferron

    Case report 29 December 2003 Pages: 345 - 349

    

35. Situs inversus totalis: giant hiatal hernia repair by laparoscopic Collis gastroplasty and Nissen fundoplication

    • C. D. Hoang
    • Y. G. Bakman
    • M. A. Maddaus

    Case report 31 December 2003 Pages: 345 - 349

    

36. Successful laparoscopic repair of a traumatic pubic symphysis hernia

    • A. Sharma
    • P. K. Jain
    • P. C. Sedman

    Case report 29 December 2003 Pages: 345 - 349

    

37. Hand-assisted laparoscopic splenectomy for solitary splenic metastasis from uterine corpus carcinoma

    • H. Takahashi
    • H. Yano
    • T. Kinoshita

    Case report 29 December 2003 Pages: 346 - 346

    

38. Bifocal esophageal and rectal cancer palliatively treated with argon plasma coagulation

    • R. Solecki
    • A. Zajac
    • M. Szura

    Case report 21 November 2003 Pages: 346 - 346

39. Laparoscopic management following ultrasonographic-guided drainage in a patient with giant paraovarian cyst

    • A. S. Cevrioglu
    • C. Polat
    • O. N. Dilek

    Case report 21 November 2003 Pages: 346 - 346

    

40. Dieulafoy-like lesion of the colon presenting with massive lower gastrointestinal bleeding

    • P. Katsinelos
    • I. Pilpilidis
    • C. Koutras

    Case report 21 November 2003 Pages: 346 - 346

    

41. Symptomatic cholecystolithiasis after laparoscopic cholecystectomy

    • S. Hellmig
    • S. Katsoulis
    • U. Fölsch

    Case report 21 November 2003 Pages: 347 - 347

    

42. Endoscopic snare resection of an intrapapillary pedunculated villous adenoma presenting as acute recurrent pancreatitis

    • P. Katsinelos
    • I. Pilpilids
    • A. Iliadis

    Case report 21 November 2003 Pages: 347 - 347

    

43. A rare life-threatening complication of migrated nitinol self-expanding metallic stent (Ultraflex)

    • H. S. S. Ho
    • H. S. Ong

    Case report 21 November 2003 Pages: 347 - 347

    

44. Umbilical endometriosis

    • F. Frischknecht
    • L. Raio
    • M. D. Mueller

    Case report 29 December 2003 Pages: 347 - 347

    

45. Perforation of an ileostomy by a retained percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) tube bumper

    • T. R. Siegel
    • M. Douglass

    Case report 29 December 2003 Pages: 348 - 348

    

46. Laparoscopic management of Chilaiditi’s syndrome

    • C. E. Lohr
    • M. A. Nuss
    • J. P. Hogg

    Case report 29 December 2003 Pages: 348 - 348

    

47. Primary endotracheal neurogenic tumors

    • S. Y. Low
    • P. Eng
    • A. Thirugnanam

    Case report 29 December 2003 Pages: 348 - 348

    

48. Laparoscopic gastric bypass after failed open horizontal stapled gastroplasty

    • S. D. St. Peter
    • J. M. Swain

    Case report 29 December 2003 Pages: 348 - 348

    

49. Laparoscopic repair of various types of biliary-enteric fistula: three cases

    • J. H. Lee
    • H. S. Han
    • H. K. Lee

    Case report 29 December 2003 Pages: 349 - 349

    

50. Surgical smoke

    • J. A. C. M. Povel

    Letter to the Editor 29 December 2003 Pages: 350 - 350