1. Definitions. For purposes of this internet forum, the following definitions shall apply:

• "ASN": American Society of Nephrology
• "Forum": Any interactive forum or message board affiliated with or
• operated by the ASN or any of its publications
• "Message": Any post, information, statement, image or other means of
• communication made by a User on the Forum
• "User": Any individual or entity that participates on the Forum, regardless
• of whether said individual or entity posts a Message.

2. Messages are for Publication. Messages will become public on the Forum. Your text will be available to anyone with an internet connection. All Messages are created for the purpose of being published on the Internet and all Messages are provided for use on the Internet through the Forum. All Users consetnt to their Messages being published on the Internet and any language to the contrary contained in a Message will not be acknowledged.

3. Registration. Users will need to complete the registration information in order for messages to be considered for publication.

4. Compliance with HIPAA. All Users acknowledge and warrant that any Message or internet link contained within a Message posted on this Forum does not disclose private and confidential patient information. ASN expressly reserves the right to remove or not to publish any Message that ASN deems to disclose private or confidential patient information. Further, all Users acknowledge and warrant that any Message or internet link contained within a Message complies with the requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.

5. This Forum is Not a Doctor. The information contained on the Forum cannot replace or substitute for the series of trained medical professionals in any field. In particular, you should regularly consult a doctor in all matters relating to physical health, particularly concerning any symptoms that may require diagnosis or medical attention. NEVER rely on information or opinions exchanged via the Messages to replace necessary, personal consultation(s) with qualified health or medical professionals to meet your individual health or medical needs. If you think you have a medical emergency, call 911 or your doctor immediately.

6. Editor's Rights. This Forum reflects diverse topics of discussion. We hope that you enjoy lively discussions while adhering to the guidelines set forth herein. We do not want to censor Messages based on the opinions expressed within a Message, but we will enforce the policies outlined herein. We reserve the right to post, not post, remove, not remove or modify Messages at our discretion and without explanation. We reserve the right to publish, screen, remove, edit, withdraw or postpone any Message considered to be obscene, lewd, violent, harassing, or otherwise objectionable and not in accord with the purposes of this Forum, whether or not such material is constitutionally protected. Although we are not responsible for the content on the Forum, we reserve the right to remove any Message that, in our judgment, does not meet these guidelines.

We invite and encourage a healthy exchange of opinions. If you disagree with a User's Message, by all means, challenge the opinion but do so with a sense of respect for the other person. Name-calling, insults and attacks are not appropriate and will not be tolerated. Agree to disagree in a respectful manner.

7. Not the Opinions of the ASN or its Publications. The ASN and its publications do not control or endorse the content found on the Forum and, therefore, the ASN and its publications specifically disclaim any liability with regard to the content on the Messages and any actions resulting from your participation on the Forum. We in no way verify any statement o ffact or opinion provided by a User in this Forum. Although we are not responsible for any content in the Forum, the ASN and its publications reserve the right at all times to disclose any information necessary to satisfy any applicable law, regulation, legal process or governmental request, or to edit,, refuse to post, or to remove any information, Message or materials in this Forum, in whole or in part, that in our judgment, does not meet our guidelines.

8. English Only. All Messages are limited to the English language. This included posts, titles, signatures, and any attachments or other forms of public display. Additionally, these guidelines apply to all Users, regardless of the User's residence or citizenship.

9. Commercial Messages Prohibited. You may not post any message that is commercial, business related or advertisers or offers to sell any products, services or otherwise (whether or not for profit) or solicits others (including solicitations for contributions or donations). Do not post commercial messages or solicitations on the Forum. Messages containing commercial or product/service promotional messages -- including, but not limited to, references to Internet sites, URLs, or links to other commercial websites – will not be posted or will be removed.

10. Public Forum. Bear in mind that the Forum is "public," and other Users will have access to your posted material and might copy, modify or distribute it. Users have no expectation of privacy with respect to any Message posted in the Forum. By submitting or posting content here, you are representing that you are the owner of such material or have authorization to distribute it. Once you post content on this Forum, you expressly grant to the AANS and the JNSPG the complete right to use, reproduce, modify, distribute, etc., the content in any form, anywhere.

11. Do Not Repeat Messages. Do not post the same Message more than once on the Forum.

12. Intellectual Property. By submitting or posting content here, you are representing that you are the owner of such material or have authorization to distribute it. Information that is copyrighted or owned by any individual or entity other than the User should not be posted on the Forum without the consent of the owner. Users will be held legally liable for any Message posted to this website or on the Forum, and may be held legally accountable if the Message they post include(s) material that infringes any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright or any other intellectual property or the proprietary right(s) of any person or entity. If such an event occurs, the individual posting the information will be held solely responsible. The ASN and its publications will not be held responsible for User-posted information that may violate intellectual property laws.

13. Prepublication. Messages on the Internet and on this Forum may be considered prepublication by many scientific journals and societies. The ASN and its publications assume no responsibility for the copyright status of any and all submissions published on the Forum, and make no inquiries pertaining to pre-publication, plagiarism or any third-party rights which may apply.

• Attachments. Please do not include attachments to the Messages
• posted on the Forum. Messages containing attachments of any kind will not be posted on the Forum.
• Termination of the Forum. We reserve the right to terminate or
• discontinue this Forum for any reason without warning to Users.

14. Rules of Conduct. The following Rules of Conduct apply to the Forum. By using the Forum, you agree that you will not submit any Message that:

• Is defamatory, abusive, harassing, threatening or an invasion of a right
• of privacy of another person;
• is bigoted, hateful, or racially or otherwise offensive;
• is violent, vulgar, obscene, pornographic or otherwise sexually explicit;
• otherwise harms or can reasonably be expected to harm any person
• or entity;
• is illegal or encourages or advocates illegal activity or the discussion
• of illegal activities with the intent to commit them, including a Message that is, or represents an attempt to engage in, child pornography, stalking, sexual assault, fraud, trafficking in obscene or stolen material, drug dealing and/or drug abuse, harassement, theft, or conspiracy to commit any criminal activity;
• contains a virus or other harmful component, or otherwise tampers
• with, impairs or damages the Forum or any connected network, or otherwise interferes with any person or entity's use or enjoyment of the Forum;
• does not generally pertain to the designated topic or theme of the
• Forum, or is antisocial, disruptive or destructive, including "flaming," "spamming," "flooding", "trolling," and "griefing" as these terms are commonly understood and used on the Internet.

We cannot and do not assure that other Users are or will be complying with the foregoing Rules of Conduct or any other provisions of these terms of use, and,a s between you and us, you hereby assume all risk of harm or injury resulting from any such lack of compliance.

BY CHECKING THE BOX BELOW, I AM ACKNOWLEDGING THAT I HAVE READ THE GUIDELINES, I UNDERSTAND THE GUIDELINES, AND THAT I ACCEPT AND AGREE TO COMPLY WITH THE GUIDELINES AT ALL TIMES WHILE PARTICIPATING IN THE Kidney News Forum.