Generalized additive models for the analysis of EQ-5D utility data.

Background: Measured utility data have a discrete distribution, and the discreteness is particularly pronounced for EQ-5D utilities. Given the discreteness of the data, modeling the distribution parametrically is likely to be difficult. Moreover, since the distribution is bounded, the linearity assumptions made by many models are questionable.

Incidence of undiagnosed sleep apnea in patients scheduled for elective total joint arthroplasty.

We investigated the frequency of undiagnosed sleep apnea in patients scheduled for elective total joint arthroplasty. Two hundred fifty-four patients were assessed between September 1999 and May 2001. At intake, patients were given a standard systems review with the addition of targeted questions about sleep apnea.

Organ donation: a pilot study of knowledge among medical and other university students.

Background: Physicians' knowledge of and attitudes towards organ donation may be a factor in organ procurement rates. There is a lack of information about how Canadian medical students perceive organ donation, and what they know about it.

Objective: This pilot study assesses the knowledge and attitudes of university students toward organ donation.