OESO (Organisation Mondiale d'Etudes Spécialisées sur les Maladies de l'Oesophage), the World Organization for Specialized Studies on Diseases of the Esophagus, was created in 1978 to bring together specialists from all disciplines involved in esophagology to carry out clinical as well as fundamental collaborative research. By virtue of its programme of multidisciplinary research and its international network of specialists from 18 disciplines and more than 80 countries, OESO is today a world-wide reference in the domain of oesophagology and an instrument for the active acquisition, permanent updating and global dissemination of knowledge within all branches of gastroenterology. Formed under the auspices of OESO, the HOPES (Health Operating Polydisciplinary Expertise Services) network proposes worldwide Web-based information, permanent updating and continuing medical education (CME) covering all digestive organs and dealing with all medical disciplines. The OESO secretariat is based in Paris, France: http://www.oeso.org