Relationship between Parental Overindulgence and Buying Behavior in the Context of Invasive Marketing: A Comparative Study of Two Cultures

This scientific investigation adopts a cross cultural perspective in studying the relationship between parental overindulgence and perception of parents regarding the influence of children in bringing in awareness, creating interest, desire and influencing final purchase decision of packaged food products. Child rearing practices differ from culture to culture and can be an important factor influencing the buying behaviour of families.Parenting styles in two cultures (American & Indian) were studied to gauge the level of influence of children to the four levels of AIDA(Strong 1925). The sample size was 117(40 American parents and 77 Indian parents). The results indicate that there exists no significant difference in the two cultures regarding the contribution of children in bringing in initial information, creating interest and desire about packaged food products in the family but the two cultures differed significantly in terms of the contribution kids have in influencing the actual buying decisions regarding packaged food products. The influence of American children was lower in final purchase than Indian children. Indian parents showed higher level of indulgence (M=3.33,S.D. =1.7) than American parents (M=2.02, S.D. =1.86).The level of indulgence was found to regress on actual buying behavior of parents. The study points at the shift of Indian parents towards over indulgence as a result of invasive marketing practices targeted at the children. The study has implications for marketers, social agencies, and parents and attempts to highlight the growing in marketing influence in the socio cultural fabric

Safety and efficacy of colchicine in COVID-19 patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized control trials

Background: Colchicine has been used an effective anti-inflammatory drug to treat gout diseases. Owing to its pharmacodynamic of inhibiting interleukins, it has been repurposed to target the cytokine storm post-SARS-CoV-2 invasion. The goal of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the safety profile of colchicine in COVID-19 patients using the gold-standard randomised-control trials. Methods: Electronic databases (Pubmed, Google Scholar, and Cochrane) were systematically searched until June 2021 and RCTs were extracted. Outcomes of interest included all-cause mortality, COVID-19 severity, mechanical ventilation, C-reactive protein and D-dimer levels. Using a random-effects model, dichotomous outcomes were pooled using odds ratios (OR) through the generic inverse variance formula while weighted mean differences were calculated using the Wan\u27s method. P-values \u3c 0.05 were considered statistically significant for all outcomes. Results: A total population of 16,048 from five RCTs were included in the analysis. Of this, 7957 were randomized to colchicine, and 8091 received standard care, with an average age of 60.67 years. Colchicine was observed to significantly reduce COVID-19 severity (OR: 0.41, 95% CI [0.22, 0.76]; p = 0.005), and CRP levels (WMD: -19.99, 95% CI [-32.09, -7.89]; p = 0.001). However, there was no significant difference in D-dimer levels (WMD: 0.31, 95% CI [-0.61, 1.23]; p = 0.51), mechanical ventilation (OR: 0.42, 95% CI [0.17, 1.03]; p = 0.06; I2 = 74%) and all-cause mortality (OR: 0.98, 95% CI [0.83, 1.16]; p = 0.84) among patients receiving colchicine or standard care. Conclusion: Colchicine treatment decreased CRP levels and COVID-19 severity, with dimer levels, all-cause mortality and mechanical ventilation remaining seemingly unaffected. Thus, clinical trials need to be carried out that allow effective evaluation of colchicine in COVID-19 patients

Managing Hepatic Encephalopathy - Combination of Lactulose and Rifaximin Versus Lactulose Monotherapy: A meta-analysis

Background: Hepatic Encephalopathy (HE), a neuropsychiatric complication of hepatic failure, is currently managed with lactulose as first-line treatment followed by other adjuncts if needed. In this meta-analysis, we determined the effect of lactulose and rifaximin combination in terms of efficacy and mortality reduction compared to lactulose alone. Materials and Methods: We searched databases (PubMed, BioMed Central, and Cochrane-Central) until July, 2022 for original studies inspecting the effects of Rifaximin and Lactulose (combination therapy) vs. lactulose as a monotherapy in the treatment of HE on outcomes of clinical efficacy, hospital stay length, HE recurrence, drugs’ side effects and mortality. Data was analyzed via Review Manager (version5.4.1) and OpenMetaAnalyst. Relative risks (RR) and weighted mean differences (WMD) with 95% confidence intervals were calculated. Results: Fifteen studies with 4327 patients were included. Pooled analysis showed combination therapy to be associated with a significantly lower mortality rate in patients having HE when compared to lactulose alone (RR 0.71 95% CI 0.58-0.88, P=0.002, I2= 68%), and clinical efficacy was also improved in the combination group (RR 1.33, 95%CI 1.19-1.48, P <0.00001, I2= 52%). HE recurrence rate, adverse events, and length of hospital stay did not significantly differ among the two groups (RR= 0.61, 95 % CI= 0.35 to 1.05, P= 0.08, I2= 84%), (RR= 0.92, 95% CI= 0.51 to 1.69, P= 0.80, I2 = 0) and (WMD −1.52, 95% CI −3.22 to 0.18, P=0.08, I2 = 83%) respectively. Conclusion: Combination therapy shows survival benefit and superior clinical efficacy over lactulose monotherapy in managing hepatic encephalopathy

Efficacy and safety of ciprofol versus propofol for induction and maintenance of general anesthesia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract Background Propofol has been the gold standard for anesthesia induction and maintenance due to its rapid onset and favorable pharmacokinetic properties. However, the search for alternative agents with improved safety and efficacy has led to the emergence of ciprofol (HSK3486), a structural analog of propofol. This systematic review and meta-analysis aim to comprehensively assess the safety and efficacy of ciprofol compared to propofol for anesthesia induction and maintenance in adult patients undergoing surgical procedures. Methods This study included only double-arm RCTs in which participants were aged eighteen or older undergoing surgery. For the statistical analysis of the extracted data, we employed RevMan 5.4.1. Results Ciprofol demonstrated a promising trend of higher anesthesiologists’ satisfaction during the induction phase (MD 0.14, 95%, CI − 0.28 to 0.56, p = 0.51), whereas Propofol was favored during maintenance. Propofol also exhibited advantages with a shorter time to successful anesthesia induction (MD 0.08 min, 95% CI 0.00 to 0.15, p = 0.04), and quicker attainment of full alertness (MD 0.11 min, 95% CI − 1.29 to 1.52, p = 0.87), suggesting its efficiency in clinical practice. Importantly, there were no significant disparities in the success rate of anesthesia. Conclusion Both ciprofol and propofol demonstrate comparable efficacy and safety for anesthesia induction and maintenance in adult patients undergoing surgery. While propofol provides a faster onset of induction, ciprofol exhibits advantages in terms of pain management. Clinicians should consider these findings when selecting anesthetic agents, and tailoring choices to individual patient needs and clinical scenarios

Datasheet1_Safety and efficacy revisited: a systematic review and meta-analysis of glue versus tack mesh fixation in laparoscopic inguinal herniorrhaphy.docx

BackgroundThis analysis addresses the uncertainty surrounding the efficacy of glue mesh fixation (GMF) compared with tack mesh fixation (TMF) in laparoscopic herniorrhaphy. Our meta-analysis incorporates recently conducted randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to enhance the reference for assessing the efficacy and safety of GMF.MethodsPubMed Central, Google Scholar, Science Direct, and Cochrane Library were extensively reviewed for articles in the English language performed from inception to May 2023 using the keywords “Glue mesh repair,” “Tack mesh repair,” “Inguinal Hernia,” “Herniorrhaphy,” “Laparoscopic,” “Mesh Fixation,” and “Randomized controlled trials.”ResultsIn this meta-analysis, we incorporated a total of 20 randomized controlled trials, evaluating each article individually using quality ratings. Compared with TMF, GMF demonstrated a significant reduction in the incidence of chronic pain [RR: 0.40, (0.23, 0.68)] and pain scores on postoperative day 1 [MD: −1.07, (−1.90, −0.25)]. We also used funnel plots and Egger's regression to test for publication bias.ConclusionIn summary, this meta-analysis establishes the significance of GMF in reducing chronic pain and postoperative day 1 pain compared with TMF. However, no statistically significant difference was noted between the GMF and TMF groups concerning hematoma, seroma, operation time, recurrence rate, and total complications. Nonetheless, given the small number of cases in this study, the findings must be validated in the future by multicenter, large-sample, high-quality RCTs.</p