An increasing number of surgical departments is creating its own homepage i
n the World Wide Web (WWW). We investigated 184 presentations concerning th
eir quality in content and technical realization. Our research revealed tha
t most presentations regard patients as their main target group in order to
meet the patients' demand for information and transparency. However, unive
rsities are especially concentrating on scientific development and neglecti
ng the patients. Only a few presentations contain means for web-based train
ing. In general, technical realization seems to be much better than the con
tent itself. As patients tend to appear as customers who will choose the ho
spital they feel comfortable with, every clinical department that is a comp
etitor should create a communication and information base for their custome
rs. Thus, they will be able to keep in touch, present their treatment types
and to enable patients to compare a multitude of surgical departments. The
usefulness for colleagues or cooperating institutions must be improved. Th
e WWW has become an important center of information in surgery.