Underutilization of peritoneal dialysis: the role of the nephrologist's referral pattern.

Background: The incidence of end-stage renal disease is increasing, placing a tremendous burden on health care resources. Peritoneal dialysis (PD) is cheaper than hemodialysis and has many potential advantages and few contraindications as an initial modality selection. This study examined differences in patient PD attempt rates between nephrologists using technique survival and mortality as outcomes.

Object file continuity and the auditory attentional blink.

Three experiments were designed to investigate the causes of the auditory attentional blink (AB). Experiments 1A and 1B revealed that there was a larger auditory AB when the target and the distractors were different in two attributes than when they were different in only one attribute. Experiments 2A and 2B showed that for pure-tone distractor sequences, there were small auditory AB deficits when both the target and the probe were different from the distractors in two attributes or in one attribute; however, for pulse distractor sequences, there was a large auditory AB when both the target and the probe were different from the distractors in one attribute, but not when they were different in two attributes.

Preventive and interceptive orthodontic treatment needs of an inner-city group of 6- and 9-year-old Canadian children.

Objective: Early recognition of developing malocclusions and the potential for uncomplicated orthodontic treatment procedures can minimize or eliminate future costly treatment. This study was designed to assess the potential for this approach in children living in a limited-income environment. A modified index for preventive and interceptive orthodontic needs (IPION) was used to determine the need for such treatment in schoolchildren aged 6 and 9 years.