29 research outputs found
Finnish Easy Readers : value proposition and competitive advantage for a book publishing business
No full textThe Finnish language is perceived as very different compared to the most popular lan-guage families worldwide, and only around six million people worldwide speak it. As a result, foreigners studying Finnish regard it as a difficult language. With a growing trend of foreigners settling in Finland, such as immigrants, students and professionals, there is an increasing demand to support their integration in the Finnish society both professionally and from a cultural perspective. Mastering the Finnish language at a satisfactory level is a prerequisite for the social integration process.
There are various methods and sources for materials, which support learning a foreign language. One of them, with a broader impact also on cultural integration are the so-called easy reader books. This thesis formulates the value proposition for Finnish Easy Readers publishing business, using the Value Proposition Canvas, and examines competition in its niche market using Porter's Five Forces Framework for Competition Analysis.
The analysis in this thesis is based on statistical and historical data, as well as on a survey conducted by the author. The findings are used to identify the key areas where publishing such books needs to concentrate its effort in order to succeed.
The author formulates the value proposition for Finnish Easy Readers as "Read Finnish books like a native" and identifies bargaining power of buyers, threat of new entrants and threat of substitutes as the main challenges with regard to competition. In order for the Finnish Easy Readers publishing business to build and maintain competitiveness in the market, the author proposes as key focus areas actions based on innovative distribution channels, pro-active product differentiation and collaboration with competing non-direct substitutes
Acute Myocardial Infarction Mortality Rates and Trends in Romania between 1994 and 2017
No full textIntroduction: The current study aimed to assess recent acute myocardial infarction (AMI) mortality rates and trends in Romania between 1994 and 2017. This dataset is a necessity in the context of the current improvement of emergency protocols, medical addressability, and modernization of hospital infrastructure. Materials and Methods: The study is a retrospective analysis of an anonymized mortality database containing all deaths registered in Romania during 1994–2017. AMI crude mortality rates (CMR) and age-standardized mortality rates (ASMR) were calculated using the European Standard Population. Poisson regression was used for calculating the annual percentage change (APC) in mortality, subsequently used to make mortality predictions through the year 2030. Results: There were 197,152 AMI deaths in women (39.3% of total AMI), and 304,644 (60.7%) in men. Mortality rates were higher in men as compared with women for the entire time covered by the study. Based on the 1994–2017 ASMR dynamics, predictions for the year 2030 showed an overall AMI ASMR of 70.9 (95% CI 69.9–71.9), with gender analysis showing 46.8 (95% CI 45.8–47.9) in women and 104.1 (95% CI 102.3–105.8) in men. Conclusion: Acute myocardial infarction age-standardized mortality rates decreased significantly in Romania between 1994 and 2017 in close correlation to the implementation of national healthcare programs
E- Original Research Impact of Associated Significant Aortic Regurgitation on Left Ventricular Remodeling and Hemodynamic Impairment in Severe Aortic Valve Stenosis
No full textPerspectives on hypertension's prevalence, treatment and control in a high cardiovascular risk East European country
No full textMiR-486 and miR-92a Identified in Circulating HDL Discriminate between Stable and Vulnerable Coronary Artery Disease Patients.
No full textSmall non-coding microRNAs (miRNAs) are implicated in gene regulation, including those involved in coronary artery disease (CAD). Our aim was to identify whether specific serum miRNAs present in the circulating lipoproteins (Lp) are associated with stable or vulnerable CAD patients. A cardiovascular disease-focused screening array was used to assess miRNAs distribution in sera collected from 95 CAD patients: 30 with stable angina (SA), 39 with unstable angina (UA), 26 at one month after myocardial infarction (MI) and 16 healthy control subjects. We found that miR-486, miR-92a and miR-122 presented the highest expression in CAD sera. These miRNA together with miR-125a, miR-146a and miR-33a were further individually analyzed by TaqMan assays. The results were consistent with PCR-array screening data that all of these miRNAs were significantly increased in CAD patients compared to controls. Using a binary logistic regression model, we established that miR-486 and miR-92a in association with some high-density lipoprotein (HDL) components can designate vulnerable CAD patients. Further, all classes of Lp were isolated from sera by density gradient ultracentrifugation. Analysis of the selected miRNAs in each Lp class showed that they were associated mainly with HDL, miR-486 and miR-92a having the highest levels. In UA and MI patients, miR-486 prevailed in HDL2, while miR-92a prevailed in HDL3, and their levels discriminate between stable and vulnerable CAD patients. We identified two circulating miRNAs that in association with some lipid metabolism biomarkers can be used as an additional tool to designate vulnerable CAD patients
Position Paper on the Management of Pregnancy-Associated Superficial Venous Thrombosis. Balkan Working Group for Prevention and Treatment of Venous Thromboembolism
No full textVenous thromboembolism (VTE) is a multifactorial disease that can possibly affect any part of venous circulation. The risk of VTE increases by about 2 fold in pregnant women and VTE is one of the major causes of maternal morbidity and mortality. For decades superficial vein thrombosis (SVT) has been considered as benign, self-limiting condition, primarily local event consequently being out of scope of well conducted epidemiological and clinical studies. Recently, the approach on SVT has significantly changed considering that prevalence of lower limb SVT is twice higher than both deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE). The clinical severity of SVT largely depends on the localization of thrombosis, when it concerns the major superficial vein vessels of the lower limb and particularly the great saphenous vein. If untreated or inadequately treated, SVT can potentially cause DVT or PE. The purpose of this review is to discuss the complex interconnection between SVT and risk factors in pregnancy and to provide evidence-based considerations, suggestions, and recommendations for the diagnosis and treatment of this precarious and delicate clinical entity
Dysfunctional HDL characterized by decreased paraoxonase 1 and increased apolipoproteins AII, CIII and myeloperoxidase levels discriminate between acute coronary syndrome and stable CAD patients
No full textDysfunctional high-density lipoproteins have distinct composition, diminished anti-inflammatory potential and discriminate acute coronary syndrome from stable coronary artery disease patients
No full textAbstractThere is a stringent need to find means for risk stratification of coronary artery diseases (CAD) patients. We aimed at identifying alterations of plasma high-density lipoproteins (HDL) components and their validation as dysfunctional HDL that could discriminate between acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and stable angina (SA) patients. HDL2 and HDL3 were isolated from CAD patients’ plasma and healthy subjects. ApolipoproteinAI (apoAI), apoAII, apoCIII, malondialdehyde (MDA), myeloperoxidase (MPO), ceruloplasmin and paraoxonase1 (PON1) were assessed. The anti-inflammatory potential of HDL subfractions was tested by evaluating the secreted inflammatory molecules of tumor necrosis factor α-activated endothelial cells (EC) upon co-incubation with HDL2 or HDL3. We found in ACS versus SA patients: 40% increased MPO, MDA, apoCIII in HDL2 and HDL3, 35% augmented apoAII in HDL2, and in HDL3 increased ceruloplasmin, decreased apoAII (40%) and PON1 protein and activity (15% and 25%). Co-incubation of activated EC with HDL2 or HDL3 from CAD patients induced significantly increased levels of secreted inflammatory molecules, 15–20% more for ACS versus SA. In conclusion, the assessed panel of markers correlates with the reduced anti-inflammatory potential of HDL subfractions isolated from ACS and SA patients (mostly for HDL3 from ACS) and can discriminate between these two groups of CAD patients.</jats:p
Distribution of circulating miRNAs profiled in the pooled sera from coronary artery disease (CAD) patients: with stable angina (SA) (A), unstable angina (UA) (B), and patients at one month after myocardial infarction (MI) (C), illustrated as scatter plots of the fold regulation values expressed relative to control group (boundary = 4).
No full text<p>The miRNAs selected for individual validation are depicted by arrows. Black dots = up-regulated miRNA (fold regulation over 4), empty dots = unchanged miRNA (fold regulation between -4 and 4, between the boundaries).</p
