NEUROMARKETING – GETTING INSIDE THE CUSTOMER’S MIND

Neuromarketing is a relatively new concept which has developed as a consequence of accepting, by an increasing number of persons, the idea that there isn’t an objective reality and that the entire world is actually inside our mind, it is the sum of our exneuromarketing, fMRI(functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging) technology, “buy button”

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION REGARDING BANK’S DISTRIBUTION CHANNELS – THE ATM NETWORK

In addition to traditional distribution methods (network of territorial units), to better meet market requirements in terms of speed and efficiency of services, banks have developed interactive electronic and computerized systems for clients: banking services via telephone, internet banking, network of automatic teller machines (ATMs), Electronic Funds Transfer at point of sale (EFTPOS). Automatic Teller Machines have become in recent years one of the common instruments through which banks offer the possibility of conducting routine operations such as: cash withdrawals, bill payments, transfer between accounts. This article presents the results obtained following a research that focused on determining the customers’ degree of satisfaction with the distribution channels used by a Top Five Romanian Bank, in particular the ATMs distribution network

Is it possible to use the Toll-like receptors as biomarkers for neonatal sepsis? Review of the recent literature

Background. Sepsis continues to be one of the main death causes in the neonate population. The toll-like receptors are molecules that express in the plasma or endosomal membrane and recognize endosomal or microorganism components. While aiming at the identification of new neonatal sepsis biomarkers, the toll-like receptors (TLR) have been considered that some of them overexpress in contact with the bacterial components. Methods. Research in the PubMed database has been made by the following criteria: Inclusion criteria (PubMed database, Period 2005-2022, English & Humans, generated 29, Meta-Analysis - 0, Review - 6, Systematic Review - 0), Exclusion criteria (Studies on animal models, Articles with merely didactical content, Articles regarding only one of the words researched either only neonatal sepsis or TLR in another context than together, Articles that are not directly connected with the topic). Based on the above-mentioned criteria 13 articles were consulted, of which 7 articles included in vivo studies, 6 with in vitro studies. Conclusions. The data of the present review and the current diagnostic method point at the fact that TLRs increase in the conditions of the presence of the inflammatory syndrome. Their dosing during in the neonatal sepsis is possible, but the non-specific overexpression is not a diagnostic

Association of Parental Factors and Insulin-like Growth Factor 2 Polymorphism with Intrauterine Growth Restriction

Polymorphism of insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF2) is known to play a role in cell development. Only the paternal IGF2 copy is active, while the copy inherited from the mother is inactive. This study aimed to explore whether maternal and paternal factors influence IGF2 polymorphism in newborns with intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) compared to appropriate for gestational age (AGA). A cross-sectional exploratory study was conducted from June 2014 to November 2015 at the Neonatology, Gynecology 1 Clinic, Cluj-Napoca, Romania. The ApaI IGF2 genotypes and allele frequencies were similar in the IUGR and AGA groups (p-value > 0.10). The IUGR babies with a protective IGF2 genetic profile had significantly younger parents (a difference in the median age of 8 years for mothers and 9 years for fathers; p-value < 0.009). The IUGR babies had parents with lower birth weights than AGA babies (mothers’ medians: 2800 g vs. 3100 g; fathers’ medians: 3000 g vs. 3400 g; p-value < 0.02). In univariable regression analysis, the mother’s and father’s birth weight proved to be associated with IUGR. The father’s birth weight proved to be the only factor significantly associated with IUGR, independent of the mother’s birth weight or the presence of a protective IGF2 genetic profile (odd ratio = 0.998 [0.996 to 1.000], p-value = 0.032)

Effects of once-weekly exenatide on cardiovascular outcomes in type 2 diabetes

BACKGROUND: The cardiovascular effects of adding once-weekly treatment with exenatide to usual care in patients with type 2 diabetes are unknown. METHODS: We randomly assigned patients with type 2 diabetes, with or without previous cardiovascular disease, to receive subcutaneous injections of extended-release exenatide at a dose of 2 mg or matching placebo once weekly. The primary composite outcome was the first occurrence of death from cardiovascular causes, nonfatal myocardial infarction, or nonfatal stroke. The coprimary hypotheses were that exenatide, administered once weekly, would be noninferior to placebo with respect to safety and superior to placebo with respect to efficacy. RESULTS: In all, 14,752 patients (of whom 10,782 [73.1%] had previous cardiovascular disease) were followed for a median of 3.2 years (interquartile range, 2.2 to 4.4). A primary composite outcome event occurred in 839 of 7356 patients (11.4%; 3.7 events per 100 person-years) in the exenatide group and in 905 of 7396 patients (12.2%; 4.0 events per 100 person-years) in the placebo group (hazard ratio, 0.91; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.83 to 1.00), with the intention-to-treat analysis indicating that exenatide, administered once weekly, was noninferior to placebo with respect to safety (P<0.001 for noninferiority) but was not superior to placebo with respect to efficacy (P=0.06 for superiority). The rates of death from cardiovascular causes, fatal or nonfatal myocardial infarction, fatal or nonfatal stroke, hospitalization for heart failure, and hospitalization for acute coronary syndrome, and the incidence of acute pancreatitis, pancreatic cancer, medullary thyroid carcinoma, and serious adverse events did not differ significantly between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with type 2 diabetes with or without previous cardiovascular disease, the incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events did not differ significantly between patients who received exenatide and those who received placebo

Pancreatic surgery outcomes: multicentre prospective snapshot study in 67 countries

Background: Pancreatic surgery remains associated with high morbidity rates. Although postoperative mortality appears to have improved with specialization, the outcomes reported in the literature reflect the activity of highly specialized centres. The aim of this study was to evaluate the outcomes following pancreatic surgery worldwide.Methods: This was an international, prospective, multicentre, cross-sectional snapshot study of consecutive patients undergoing pancreatic operations worldwide in a 3-month interval in 2021. The primary outcome was postoperative mortality within 90 days of surgery. Multivariable logistic regression was used to explore relationships with Human Development Index (HDI) and other parameters.Results: A total of 4223 patients from 67 countries were analysed. A complication of any severity was detected in 68.7 percent of patients (2901 of 4223). Major complication rates (Clavien-Dindo grade at least IIIa) were 24, 18, and 27 percent, and mortality rates were 10, 5, and 5 per cent in low-to-middle-, high-, and very high-HDI countries respectively. The 90-day postoperative mortality rate was 5.4 per cent (229 of 4223) overall, but was significantly higher in the low-to-middle-HDI group (adjusted OR 2.88, 95 per cent c.i. 1.80 to 4.48). The overall failure-to-rescue rate was 21 percent; however, it was 41 per cent in low-to-middle-compared with 19 per cent in very high-HDI countries.Conclusion: Excess mortality in low-to-middle-HDI countries could be attributable to failure to rescue of patients from severe complications. The authors call for a collaborative response from international and regional associations of pancreatic surgeons to address management related to death from postoperative complications to tackle the global disparities in the outcomes of pancreatic surgery (NCT04652271; ISRCTN95140761)