Diabetes Mellitus and Other Comorbidities: Outcome among Covid-19 Patients in Kerala: A Retrospective Observational Study.

Background: Covid-19 was declared by the WHO as a pandemic in 2020; India was also severely affected. Diabetes, a major lifestyle disorder, has seen its prevalence rate rising in developing countries. India is home to the world's second-largest population of diabetes.

The Rise of Artificial Intelligence: Implications in Orthopedic Surgery.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is slowly making its way into all domains and medicine is no exception. AI is already proving to be a promising tool in the health-care field. With respect to orthopedics, AI is already under use in diagnostics as in fracture and tumor detection, predictive algorithms to predict the mortality risk and duration of hospital stay or complications such as implant loosening and in real-time assessment of post-operative rehabilitation.

Palliative Care in COVID Times - Quality of Death Matters!!

Palliative care for patients with chronic non-malignant diseases is a less addressed area. In-hospital care, particularly, critical care of elderly population with advanced organ failure, can lead to poor resource management. ICU beds come under the strained resource category, more so in the backdrop of the recent COVID-19 pandemic.

Covid-19 and leptospirosis, pulmonary involvement and response to steroids: A comparative observational study from a rural Tertiary care center in Kerala.

Background: COVID-19 is an emerging infectious disease with a global outreach. Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease mainly confined to tropical areas. In both cases, most of those affected are asymptomatic or have only mild respiratory disease.

Covid-19 and leptospirosis: Cytokine storm and the use of steroids.

The majority of patients with Covid-19 have a good outcome. However, complications principally of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and multiple-organ failure can occur rapidly. Leptospirosis, a zoonotic disease, is similar to Covid-19 in that most infections are mild or asymptomatic and only a small number develop ARDS.

Eucalyptus oil poisoning: two case reports.

Background: Eucalyptus oil poisoning is rare in adults but is not that uncommon in children. The common side effects in children include depression in the level of consciousness, ataxia, seizures, and vomiting. Unlike in children, seizures are unusual in adult patients with eucalyptus oil poisoning.

Aetiology of acute febrile illness: a multicentre study from the province of Kerala in southern India.

Acute febrile illness with varied aetiology but similar symptoms is common in tropical countries. This prospective, multicentre study was conducted in selected centres in the province of Kerala in India principally to analyse the aetiology of acute febrile illnesses in adult patients over the course of one year. Overall, 1324 patients were included in the study.

An Investigation into the High Prevalence of Hepatitis B in a Rural Area of Kerala State, India: Hypothesis on sp. (Diptera: Tabanidae) Transmission.

Objective: Since 2005 there have been several reports of hepatitis B outbreak in the state of Kerala in southern India. Objective of this study was to analyze such outbreaks and to explore hypothesis pertaining the transmission mode.

Methods: Retrospective observational study involving cases of acute hepatitis B acquired between 1 January 2015 and 31 December 2015 and their family members residing in Mazhuvanoor village in Ernakulam district of Kerala State in southern India.

Delay in time from fracture to surgery: A potential risk factor for in-hospital mortality in elderly patients with hip fractures.

Purpose: To estimate the Impact of delay in surgery for elderly hip fractures on short term outcome measured in terms of in-hospital mortality.

Methods: Retrospective study involving patients above 60 years of age with a primary diagnosis of hip fracture treated by surgery to analyze the relation between timing of surgery and in-hospital mortality.

Results: There were 144 patients who met the criteria.

Immune thrombocytopenia with multi-organ dysfunction syndrome as a rare presentation of scrub typhus: a case report.

Background: Scrub typhus is an acute infectious illness caused by Orientia tsutsugamushi. It is endemic to a part of the world known as the "tsutsugamushi triangle". Humans are accidental hosts in this zoonotic disease.

A Hospital-based Retrospective Study on Frequency and Distribution of Viral Hepatitis.

Background: Viral hepatitis is a major public health problem throughout the world. It is the inflammation of the liver due to the infection of any of the five main hepatic viruses A to E and it affects the liver through different modes of transmission. This study mainly aims at the frequency and distribution of viral hepatitis based on age and sex during a time period of 5 years.

A rare case of penetrating rectal injury.

Penetrating injuries of the colon and rectum have been reported earlier and are often associated with injuries of adjacent viscera such as bladder, uterus or vagina, prostate and seminal vesicles as well as iliac vessels. But this case is rare not only regarding the mechanism of injury but also with respect to the depth of penetration, with the foreign body having almost reached the thorax after entry through the anal orifice.

A rare case of morgagni diaphragmatic hernia presenting in pregnancy.

A case of Morgagni hernia presenting in adulthood is presented. This form of congenital diaphragmatic hernia is rare in itself and is known to present in adulthood in some cases. But presentation after having undergone three surgeries-PDA ligation, appendicectomy and a full term pregnancy followed by LSCS is even rarer.

Feasibility of single-incision laparoscopic surgery for appendicitis in abnormal anatomical locations: A single surgeon's initial experience.

Background: Single-incision laparoscopic surgery is considered as a more technically demanding procedure than the standard laparoscopic surgery. Based on an initial and early experience, single-incision laparoscopic appendectomy (LA) was found to be technically advantageous for dealing with appendicitis in unusual anatomical locations. This study aims to highlight the technical advantages of single-incision laparoscopic surgery in dealing with the abnormally located appendixes and furthermore report a case of acute appendicitis occurring in a sub-gastric position, which is probably the first such case to be reported in English literature.

Acromegaly in pregnancy.

Pregnancy in a patient with acromegaly is a rare occurrence. Here in, we report a patient with acromegaly who presented to us in the 2(nd) trimester of pregnancy with visual loss in the right eye. Her vision improved after surgery.

Laparoscopic management of massive spontaneous external haemorrhage from the umbilical varix due to recanalisation of the paraumbilical vein in a patient with 'Child's Class A' liver cirrhosis.

Spontaneous external haemorrhage from the umbilical varix is an extremely rare complication of portal hypertension. Bleeding is usually into the peritoneal cavity and the treatment involves urgent laparotomy and ligation of the bleeding varices. We describe a cirrhotic 38-year-old man who presented with spontaneous external haemorrhage from the umbilical varix which was successfully managed laparoscopically by in-situ distal clipping and proximal transcutaneous ligation of the recanalised paraumbilical veins.

Determinants of childhood tuberculosis--a case control study among children registered under revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme in a district of South India.

Aim: To study the determinants of Tuberculosis (TB) in children between the age group of 0-14 years receiving treatment under Revised National TB Control Programme (RNTCP).

Methods: A case (registered under RNTCP) control study was undertaken with 41 cases and 82 controls.

Results: Factors found to have significance according to binary logistic regression were low-birth weight (LBW) [Odd's ratio = 3.

Adult necrotizing enterocolitis and non occlusive mesenteric ischemia.

Adult necrotizing enterocolitis and non occlusive mesenteric ischemia are rare causes of acute abdomen in adults. Accurate preoperative diagnosis is often difficult in these cases. Here, four cases of massive bowel necrosis with varying segments of small and large bowel involvement are described, all of whom underwent surgery.

Spontaneous Perforation of the Colon and Hypothyroidism: Report of a Case and Review of Literature.

Spontaneous perforation of the colon is a well documented but rare clinical entity commonly found to occur in the elderly and associated with chronic constipation. Hypothyroidism is known to be associated with intestinal motility disorders ranging from chronic constipation to more serious conditions like mega colon and pseudo obstruction. The case described here is that of a 35 years old hypothyroid male who presented with perforation peritonitis due to spontaneous perforation of the rectosigmoid.

Prevalence of dental health problems among school going children in rural Kerala.

The purpose of this study was to know the prevalence and pattern of dental health problems in rural school children of Kerala and to identify the priority area for dental health education programmes. The children were examined and findings recorded. the findings show that more than 50% of the children in the 12 to 15 years of age group in rural Kerala suffers from some form of dental diseases.