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Background: Acute appendicitis is the most common cause of surgical abdomen. A delay in diagnosis and subsequent delay in intervention may lead to appendicular perforation which leads to peritonitis and further complications including death. In this study, we tried to evaluate - "Estimation of serum bilirubin level as a diagnostic laboratory marker of acute appendicitis and its role in prediction of appendicular perforation." Aims and Objectives: The objectives of the study are as follows: To study the relationship between hyperbilirubinemia and acute appendicitis and to evaluate its credibility as a diagnostic marker for acute appendicitis. To evaluate whether elevated Bilirubin levels have a predictive potential for diagnosis of appendicular perforation. Materials and Methods: Patients clinically diagnosed with acute appendicitis, supported by imaging studies, who gave consent for the study were included in the study. All those patients underwent estimation of serum bilirubin levels along with other investigations. Data collected were compiled and analyzed. Results: In this study, among 408 patients, sensitivity of serum bilirubin in predicting acute appendicitis was 74.59%. Specificity of serum bilirubin in predicting acute appendicitis was 12.38%. Positive predictive value of serum bilirubin in predicting acute appendicitis was 71.06%. Negative predictive value of serum bilirubin in predicting acute appendicitis was 14.44%. Odds ratio was 0.4147. Conclusion: Serum Bilirubin level appears to be a promising marker for diagnosing acute appendicitis and perforation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic enforced nationwide lockdown, which has restricted human activities from March 24 to May 3, 2020, resulted in an improved air quality across India. The present research investigates the connection between COVID-19 pandemic-imposed lockdown and its relation to the present air quality in India; besides, relationship between climate variables and daily new affected cases of Coronavirus and mortality in India during the this period has also been examined. The selected seven air quality pollutant parameters (PM10, PM2.5, CO, NO2, SO2, NH3, and O3) at 223 monitoring stations and temperature recorded in New Delhi were used to investigate the spatial pattern of air quality throughout the lockdown. The results showed that the air quality has improved across the country and average temperature and maximum temperature were connected to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. This outcomes indicates that there is no such relation between climatic parameters and outbreak and its associated mortality. This study will assist the policy maker, researcher, urban planner, and health expert to make suitable strategies against the spreading of COVID-19 in India and abroad. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are inadequate empirical studies on non-farm livelihood choices of rural households in the state of West Bengal, India. This study aims to explore the determinants that effect the choice of households to engage in non-farm economic activities. The present study found that non-farm livelihood diversification factors are more heterogeneous and mainly depend on households' strategic decisions. A household's choice of non-farm livelihood activity is determined by binary aspects opportunity-driven versus distress-driven, but it is a complex transformation phenomenon. It has been noticed that within the non-farm livelihoods, share of wage labour (38.3%) is higher, followed by non-farm businesses (19.8%), service providers (18.0%), and salaried jobs (3.4%). The location and distance to the town from the households, food insecurity, and agricultural land size are more influential and statistically significant factors in choosing non-farm livelihood practices. The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) has negatively impacted rural non-farm livelihood activities. There is an 18% and 39% probability of reducing non-farm business and services compared to the increasing MGNREGA work opportunities. Moreover, the likelihood of non-farm business choices has increased by 56% due to rainfall and temperature-change-induced disasters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]