The cloud paradigm applied to e-Health.

Background: Cloud computing is a new paradigm that is changing how enterprises, institutions and people understand, perceive and use current software systems. With this paradigm, the organizations have no need to maintain their own servers, nor host their own software. Instead, everything is moved to the cloud and provided on demand, saving energy, physical space and technical staff.

A user-friendly web portal for T-Coffee on supercomputers.

Background: Parallel T-Coffee (PTC) was the first parallel implementation of the T-Coffee multiple sequence alignment tool. It is based on MPI and RMA mechanisms. Its purpose is to reduce the execution time of the large-scale sequence alignments.

Single port access sleeve gastrectomy: Is it reasonable?

This short letter is in response to the article published in your publication about single-incision laparoscopic bariatric surgery, by Chih-Kun Huang. We want to focus on the technical aspects.

[Colorectal laparoscopy in the Canary Islands. A multicenter study of 144 patients].

Introduction: To analyze the short-term results of laparoscopic colorectal surgery (LCRS) in the Canary Islands.

Material And Methods: A questionnaire was sent to hospitals performing laparoscopy and retrospective data on demographic, perioperative and pathological variables in 144 patients who underwent LCRS between May 1993 and May 2003 were obtained.

Results: Sixty-five men and 79 women underwent colon (n=126) and rectal (n=18) surgery in the last 16 months of the study period.

Do geographic and educational factors influence the quality of life in rectal cancer patients with a permanent colostomy?

Purpose: This study was designed to evaluate possible social and geographic factors that could have an impact on quality of life in patients after abdominoperineal excision of the rectum. Although the number of patients with rectal cancer who need to be treated with abdominoperineal excision of the rectum and construction of permanent colostomy has greatly decreased in the past, there is still controversy about the influence on quality of life caused by this procedure.

Methods: In a prospective trial, patients operated on for low rectal cancer by abdominoperineal excision of the rectum were evaluated by a quality of life questionnaire, modified from The American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons questionnaire, to assess fecal incontinence.

Sacral spinal nerve stimulation for faecal incontinence: multicentre study.

Background: In patients with faecal incontinence in whom conservative treatment fails, options are limited for those with a functionally deficient but morphologically intact sphincter. We investigated the effect of sacral nerve stimulation on continence and quality of life.

Methods: In this multicentre prospective trial, 37 patients underwent a test stimulation period, followed by implantation of a neurostimulator for chronic stimulation in 34.