The IMIGASTRIC registry is now open for the retrospective collection of data that takes into account all cases available from 1 January 2000 to date (14 May 2015).

OPENING LETTER

Dear Investigator,

It is a pleasure for our organizing team to announce the official opening of the “IMIGASTRIC” registry.

The online IMIGASTRIC software is now ready for official data entry at the following new address:

Arriving at this point has taken many months of study design, along with attendant effort and difficulty, and we sincerely thank you for your cooperation in the various phases. We are grateful for the support and especially for your patience. Your suggestions were valuable and useful. The software we created is a unique tailored tool and could be this study’s key to success. The final version of the system allows us to collect a lot of data concerning all aspects of gastric surgery, both minimally invasive and open surgery.

This retrospective step of the project will take into account all cases available from 1 January 2000 to date (day of the official opening). We know this a laborious work of archival research, but everyone can take the necessary time to do the best possible. Data collection can be carried out gradually over the next few months. In fact, a first interim analysis is scheduled for the end of the year. Periodic reports on the progress of the data entry will be generated. Only 22 of all fields are required fields (whose answers are simply selectable from the drop down menu) and are marked with an asterisk, but more data will be collected and consequently more analysis will be possible, as more substudies will be conducted.

This is a great opportunity for all of us that we cannot miss if we hope to make a significant contribution in this field of research.

We invite you to visit the Web site portal of the study (www.imigastric.com), where you can find study information, news, and a link to the login page of the registry for quick access. We are at your disposal for any clarification, queries, or other need. If you have any difficulties with the software, do not hesitate to contact us.

Good work! Let’s keep in touch.

Best regards,

The promoting team