Factors that may cause such differences include, among other things: future economic, competitive, reimbursement and regulatory conditions; new product introductions; demographic trends; intellectual property; litigation; financial market conditions; and future business decisions made by us and our competitors. All of these factors are difficult or impossible to predict accurately and many of them are beyond our control. For a further list and description of these and other important risks and uncertainties that may affect our future operations, see Part I, Item 1A - Risk Factors in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which we may update in Part II, Item 1A - Risk Factors in Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q we have filed or will file hereafter. We disclaim any intention or obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect any change in our expectations or in events, conditions or circumstances on which those expectations may be based, or that may affect the likelihood that actual results will differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. This cautionary statement is applicable to all forward-looking statements contained in this document.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
To supplement our consolidated financial statements presented on a GAAP basis, we disclose certain non-GAAP financial measures including adjusted earnings per share. Adjusted earnings per share excludes goodwill and intangible asset impairment charges; acquisition-, divestiture-, litigation- and restructuring-related charges and credits; certain discrete tax items and amortization expense. Non-GAAP measures such as adjusted earnings per share are not in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States. The GAAP financial measure most directly comparable to adjusted earnings per share is GAAP earnings per share. The difference between our estimated impact of the acquisition on our GAAP and adjusted earnings per share relates to amortization expense on acquired intangible assets and acquisition-related net charges, which primarily include exit costs and other fees. These amounts are excluded by the Company for purposes of measuring adjusted earnings per share.
Management uses adjusted earnings per share along with other supplemental non-GAAP measures to evaluate performance period over period, to analyze the underlying trends in our business, to assess its performance relative to its competitors, and to establish operational goals and forecasts that are used in allocating resources. Non-GAAP financial measures, including adjusted earnings per share, should not be considered in isolation from or as a replacement for GAAP financial measures. We believe that presenting non-GAAP financial measures in addition to GAAP financial measures provides investors greater transparency to the information used by our management for its financial and operational decision-making and allows investors to see our results "through the eyes" of management. We further believe that providing this information better enables our investors to understand our operating performance and to evaluate the methodology used by management to evaluate and measure such performance.

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