The influence of the assessment of internet websites offering tourist services on the manner of purchase of holiday packages

The purpose of this paper is to answer the following question: how does the trust of websites offering tourist services influence the manner of purchase of accommodation services and holiday packages? Data were obtained from 505 respondents via an Internet-based questionnaire between May and October 2015. All of the respondents were Polish Internet users. Individuals who both sought information on tourist services and purchased the services offline indicated that the websites of hotels, travel agencies, and tour operators are the most credible. Another group who held a high opinion of hotels and tourist intermediaries’ websites was composed of people characterised by the ‘research online, purchase offline’ (ROPO) effect or the reverse-ROPO effect. People who searched for information on holiday packages and bought them via the Internet held a lower opinion of websites of hotels, travel agents, and tour operators. Research indicates that with respect to the assessment of the credibility of websites offering tourist services, there are significant differences between individuals seeking information on tourist services online and those who purchase such services online

Holding accounts in several banks - a conscious or reckless consumer?

Service providers are in a fierce competition for their clients’ loyalty, encouraging them to participate in loyalty programs or to install mobile applications. Split loyalty is becoming more popular on the banking services market. This means that customers are loyal to two or three companies or service providers by buying or using their products or services interchangeably. This phenomenon may be further explained by the liberalization of the banking sector, for example through the Payment Services Directive (PSD2). Whilst the unbanked are a commonly analyzed subject, the overbanked have not yet been examined in the literature. The aim of the current article is to answer the following question: is having accounts in multiple banks connected with customer recklessness or consumer awareness? The analysis carried out by the author of this paper shows that people who have accounts in many banks: are aware of the guaranteed amounts of deposits in banks operating in Poland, compare offers in different banks, and are less likely to be victims of phishing. Results show that awareness increases with respondents’ age. Age is a variable which directly and indirectly affects the number of accounts held in different banks

Is determination of transition zone volume by transrectal ultrasound in patients with clinically benign prostatic enlargement sufficiently reliable in the clinical setting?

INTRODUCTION: Controversies exist regarding the accuracy of transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) determination of transition zone volume (TZV) when compared with enucleated adenoma weight. AIM: To determine the accuracy and reliability of measurements of the TZV by TRUS, by comparing preoperative radiological findings with the enucleated prostate adenoma volume, measured by fluid displacement volumetry (FDV), after retropubic prostatectomy performed by the Millin method, and, moreover, to evaluate changes in the surgical capsule size in the intermediate postoperative period. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We measured TZV preoperatively using TRUS and postoperatively with FDV in 112 patients who underwent retroperitoneal prostatectomy for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). RESULTS: The TRUS volume correlated well with specimen volumes (r = 0.945, p < 0.0001). The median (quartile 1, quartile 3) absolute error was 7.35 ml (4.15 ml, 9.28 ml) and the median percent error was 9.12% (4.75%, 14.98%). Percent error, but not absolute error, was significantly related to TRUS TZV (p < 0.001 and 0.217, respectively). Adenomas > 80 cc were associated with lower percent error. The median volume of the residual prostate tissue measured 3.5 years after prostatectomy was 92.65 cc (65.75 cc, 109.58 cc), whereas the median volume of the surgical capsule, depending on the equation used for its calculation, was 24.80 cc (16.25 cc, 37.37 cc) and 31.43 cc (23.14 cc, 43.32 cc). CONCLUSIONS: The TRUS TZV correlated well with values determined by FDV. It can be reliably used in clinical management of BPH

Determination of prostate adenoma weight reduction due to vaporisation process occurring during transurethral resection of the prostate

INTRODUCTION: Transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) is regarded as the gold standard surgical treatment for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). The completeness of TURP may be assessed indirectly by estimation of the weight of glandular tissue removed. This parameter is often lower than expected. Tissue vaporisation in the course of TURP could be a contributory cause. AIM: To quantitatively evaluate tissue vaporisation occurring in the course of transurethral resection of the prostate and electrovaporisation of the prostate (EVAP) performed under experimental conditions. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study was performed on 26 prostate glands removed during retropubic prostatectomy. Immediately following surgery all adenomas were halved and TURP or EVAP were carried out on both halves of each gland for period of 5 min. The amount of prostate tissue which vaporised during EVAP and TURP were calculated. RESULTS: The mean weight (± standard deviation) of the adenoma lost due to resection and vaporisation in the TURP group was 10.00 ±2.92 g and 4.26 ±1.59 g, respectively. The latter accounted for 30.10 ±7.71% of total prostate weight reduction. The mean prostate weight lost in the course of EVAP was 5.03 ±1.58 g. CONCLUSIONS: The vaporisation significantly contributes to the prostate tissue loss occurring during transurethral resection of the prostate

Cross-channel information search and patterns of consumer electronics purchasing

Consumers diversify the sources where they seek information about goods and services as well as the places where they make a purchase. To a great extent, the choice between online and offline channels is determined by the qualities of the products that are sought, the frequency of purchasing them, and the pace of technological changes that the needed goods undergo. Consumer familiarity with a particular channel matters as well. The aim of the article is to verify whether a customer’s characteristics (age, gender, technical skills, technical education) influence the way consumers buy consumer electronics. The article focuses on radio and television equipment, computers, and mobile phones. The main point of interest is the differences during the information search and purchasing stages. The paper reports on the survey results conducted among 741 respondents. The analysis showed that the subjective perception of the respondents’ own technical skills as well as their gender diversify the way electronics are purchased. A non-linear relationship has been discovered between the risk involved in filing a warranty claim on electronics purchased via the Internet and the way of buying these products

Modified technique for laparoscopic running vesicourethral anastomosis

INTRODUCTION: A vesicourethral anastomosis is the most challenging and time-consuming step of radical prostatectomy. In 2003, van Velthoven introduced his own technique of connecting the bladder neck with the membranous urethra, which has remained the most popular method since. Despite being effective, this method is time consuming and is not free from the risk of complications. AIM: Here we describe our technique for laparoscopic vesicourethral anastomosis using a running suture as an alternative to the traditional approach. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The vesicourethral anastomosis is created using a running stitch placed first at the 5 o'clock position on the posterolateral aspect of the bladder outside-in and then through the urethra at the same location inside-out. Proceeding anticlockwise, the running suture is placed 5 times more through both the bladder neck and the urethra in a similar fashion until it meets the free end at the 5 o'clock position. A single knot is then tied outside the bladder. RESULTS: The anastomotic technique has been used in 28 patients with clinically organ confined prostate cancer. The mean anastomosis time was 9.53 min, the mean operative time was 155.20 min, the mean drain permanence was 2.71 days, and the mean catheterisation time was 17.28 days. Continence rate 3 months after surgery was 92.85%, and 100% at 6- and 12-month follow-up visits. CONCLUSIONS: We describe a safe, feasible and efficient technique for vesicourethral anastomosis. Further studies on a larger group of patients are needed to confirm our encouraging preliminary results

Student readiness to start their own business

Micro firms are more important in Poland than in other European Union (EU) member states because Polish micro firms represent a larger share of the total number of Polish firms and contribute more to total turnover and gross value added than EU micro firms. Polish students exhibit substantial interest in starting their own businesses. This paper presents the results of a study examining the entrepreneurial attitudes of 458 students. The goal of the study was to identify relationships between academic majors and academic programme and the extent to which students were ready to start their own business. The analysis revealed that although the choice of academic major did not influence student readiness to start a business, there was an association between academic programme and student readiness to start their own business. Respondent gender influenced the extent to which students were prepared to start their own business due to gender differences in access to business start-up financing

Laparoscopic radical prostatectomy with bladder neck preservation : positive surgical margin and urinary continence status

INTRODUCTION: Preservation of the bladder neck (BN) has been controversial, as limited excision of the bladder neck may result in incomplete resection of the disease. Moreover, the urinary continence rate may not be improved. AIM: To evaluate the effect of bladder neck sparing on urinary continence, and surgical margins status in prostate cancer (PCa) patients treated with laparoscopic radical extraperitoneal prostatectomy. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A retrospective analysis of 295 consecutive patients who had undergone laparoscopic radical extraperitoneal prostatectomy for clinically localised prostate cancer in a single institution was performed. Positive surgical margin (SM(+)) and urinary continence status at 3, 6, and 12 months were evaluated. RESULTS: The distribution of SM(+) for pT2, pT3, and pT4a was 15.3% (27/176), 49.1% (58/118), and 100% (1/1), respectively. Overall, there were 55.61%, 80.61%, and 84.69% of men continent at 3, 6, and 12 months, respectively. However, when limiting the analysis to those who did not receive adjuvant radiotherapy within 12 months following surgery, urinary continence rates were 59.23%, 85.86%, and 90.21% at 3, 6, and 12 months, respectively. Preoperative prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and pathological T stage were identified as significant predictors of positive surgical margins. CONCLUSIONS: Conclusions: Laparoscopic radical extraperitoneal prostatectomy with bladder neck preservation has been a safe procedure which has resulted in good functional outcome. We observed a relatively high incidence of positive surgical margins which could be attributed to a large number of extracapsular disease cases

Degeneration of the symphysis pubis presenting as a submucosal urinary bladder tumour

Urinary bladder sonography is a sensitive diagnostic technique used for visualizing urinary bladder tumours. The aim of our communication is to present a case of a pseudotumour of the urinary bladder originating from the symphysis pubis syndesmosis. A 58-year-old woman was seen by a urologist with symptoms of lower urinary tract infection. Urinary bladder sonography was performed, followed by magnetic resonance imaging. Sonographic images of the bladder showed an exophytic mass on the urinary bladder's anterior wall. A transurethral resection of the tumour was performed. A histopathological examination revealed a necrotic extramural mass, without traits of malignancy. The mass reappeared in the follow-up vesical sonography. Subsequently, its transurethral resection was repeated with the same histopathological findings. The next urinary bladder sonography revealed the presence of the mass again. Pelvic magnetic resonance imaging was performed, which showed advanced degenerative changes in the pubic symphysis syndesmosis that protruded into the bladder, imitating a urinary bladder tumour. To avoid unnecessary surgery, both radiologists and urologists should be made aware that there is a possibility of similar cases in patients. Magnetic resonance imaging enabled correct determination of the primary site of the growth, which, together with the histopathological examination results, influenced the choice of the implemented therapeutic procedures