Background: Malnutrition being the biggest contributor to child mortality and morbidity is highly prevalent among preschool children in India. The state of Kerala which tops the list in most of the health indicators in India is no exception to wide prevalence of malnutrition in children. Objective: To assess the nutritional status of Anganwadi children aged 2-5 years in a rural area of North Kerala. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was done among Anganwadi children between 2 and 5 years of age from January 2013 to March 2013 at Cheruthazham, Kannur district of Kerala. Cluster sampling method was used for the study. Height and weight of the children were measured using the standard anthropometric equipment, and body mass index was calculated. Data were analyzed by SPSS version 17, Microsoft Excel 2007. Results: In accordance with the WHO criteria, 14.6% of children were underweight; 10.6% stunted and 16.6% were wasted. Underweight, stunting, and wasting were most prevalent in 2-3-year-old children and minimum among 3-4-year-old children. Underweight and wasting were more prevalent among female children than their male counterparts. Stunting was more in male children. Conclusion: Results of the present study showed that the nutritional status of the children in studied population was good comparing with other studies. Nutrition, health education and good access, and utilization of healthcare can be very effective interventions which could result in substantial reduction in undernutrition in children.

Background: Acute otitis media (AOM) is the most common childhood illness necessitating medical therapy for children younger than 5 years. Long-term and exclusive breastfeeding is associated with protection against AOM. However, faulty feeding position and habits can lead to the occurrence of AOM in infants. Objectives: The aim of this study is to assess the risk of occurrence of AOM with faulty feeding positions during the 1st year of life. Materials and Methods: All breastfed infants <1 year with a provisional diagnosis of AOM, during August 2015 - January 2016 (6 months), were included in the study. Syndromic children, children with craniofacial anomalies, bottle-fed infants, and those not willing to participate in the study were excluded from the study. Demographic details and detailed history, especially, the feeding position were collected from the parents. Diagnosis of AOM was confirmed by a senior ENT surgeon after otoscopic examination. Results: 118 children with AOM were statistically analyzed. They aged between 1 month and 12 months with a mean of 6.8 and standard deviation of 4.1 months. There were 68 (57.62%) males and 50 (42.37%) females. No statistical significance was observed for sex or laterality with AOM. A statistically significant correlation was observed between AOM and age groups, AOM and position of the baby. Conclusion: In this study, we have observed that feeding the infant in supine position significantly increases the risk of AOM in infants.

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Background: Incomplete formation and maturation of the central nervous system makes it extremely vulnerable to injury, in the case of premature neonates. This can result in a broad range of neurodevelopmental abnormalities. Cranial ultrasound is a sensitive tool for the early detection of these. Hence the present study was undertaken to assess the prevalence of neurosonological abnormality in preterm infants. The aims of the study were to identify and enumerate the neurosonographic features, to assess the severity of brain injuries by grading the neurosonographic findings and to correlate the clinical presentations with the neurosonographic findings.Methods: The present study was conducted in Department of Radiodiagnosis, Pariyaram Medical College. It consisted of all preterm neonates (less than 37 weeks of gestational age) referred to the Radiology department. The initial scan will be done as soon as possible (within 2 weeks of birth) followed by a repeat scan of the same infants at 36 weeks of corrected age, and at 8weeks post-partum.Results: A total of 100 neonates with gestational age varying from 29 to 37 weeks were studied, with the birth weight varying from 1.5 to 1.9 kg. The most common abnormality found on neurosonogram was germinal-matrix haemorrhage, followed by periventricular leukomalacia.Conclusions: Real time sonography is a sensitive non-invasive initial investigation for the detection of various brain lesions in the preterm neonates.

Background: Twins carry significant risks to both mothers and babies. The purpose of this study was to evaluate chorionicity and its impact on perinatal outcomes in twins.Methods: This prospective observational study was conducted in the department of obstetrics and gynecology, Government T. D. Medical College, Alappuzha, Kerala. A total of 106 cases of twin pregnancies were included in the prospective descriptive study. Based on the ultrasound results and methods of the postpartum pathologic examination of the placental membranes, the cases were divided into the twin group with monochorionic diamniotic (MCDA) and twin group with dichorionic diamniotic (DCDA group). The relationships of different chorionic properties and fetal outcomes were determined by comparing various fetal outcomes.Results: Among 106 twin pregnancies, 61.3% were DCDA twins, 38.7% were MCDA. Average maternal age of monochorionic twin was 25 and that of dichorionic twin was 27. Perinatal mortality of monochorionic twin was 14.7% when compared to 8.6% for dichorionic twin. The mean gestational age for monochorionic twin pregnancy was 34.78 weeks whereas it was 35.91 weeks for dichorionic pregnancy. Elective and emergency LSCS was done more for dichorionic twin pregnancies compared to monochorionic twin pregnancies. Low Apgar scores were seen in monochorionic twins compared to dichorionic twins.Conclusions: The incidence of fetal outcomes in the monochorionic group was inferior to those in the dichorionic group. The fetal outcomes may be improved by determining the chorionic properties in early pregnancy by using ultrasound and consequently planning for pregnancy monitoring and intervention.