Autopsy after sunset will encourage organ donation

By Narvijay Yadav
Till now the procedure of postmortem was conducted only in the daylight. This was an unwritten rule, due to which postmortem  were postponed till the next day, especially in small towns. Due to this, the family and friends of the deceased used to face a lot of problems. Now the Government of India has changed the postmortem protocol, which has made it possible to conduct a postmortem at any time of the day. However, this will depend on the availability of suitable facilities in the hospitals where the autopsy is to be conducted.
In hospitals, not every dead body undergoes a postmortem. Only when death occurs under mysterious circumstances, pathologists and doctors of forensic medicine usually conduct a postmortem to determine the cause of death. Now since there will be no unnecessary delay in this process, due to which the organs of the deceased can be preserved for organ donation in time.
Light plays an important role in postmortem examination, as the colour of the wound or internal organs can reveal the cause of death. However, the introduction of autopsy in the daylight dates back to the British period. There was no electricity in those days, so it was not possible to conduct the postmortem after sunset. There was no order regarding this in writing. It was just a tradition, which was going on since then.
The new protocol has been arranged to make the process of organ donation easy. Video recording of all the postmortems that take place after sunset will be done for future reference to remove any doubts and for legal purposes.
The Fear of Dengue  
In India, when Covid19 epidemic turned mild, Dengue spread at a fast pace. The increasing number of Dengue cases and deaths due to the disease have raised concerns in the government and the public alike. In response to the growing threat of mosquitoes, heavy rains in some states added to the problem. In view of the increasing number of Dengue cases in the country, a high-level team has been deployed by the Center to assess public health measures to control the vector-borne disease and manage the situation.
Meanwhile, new variants of dengue have been detected in 11 states. This has led to serious complications in some patients, including liver problems. These patients are prone to internal bleeding, vomiting and fever. Dengue fever usually begins with a sudden rise in temperature for 2-7 days and its symptoms include headache, weakness and itching among other things.
Generally the cases of Dengue fever increase between July to November every year. The disease has a seasonal pattern, which starts after the monsoon takes over. Dengue virus is spread by the female Aedes mosquito, which bites during the day. The disease is diagnosed by blood test. This test is usually done after 3-7 days of fever. This test is done free of cost in government hospitals, although patients often have to go to private labs due to limited kits in government institutions. People should not allow mosquitoes to breed in and around their houses or workplace. Necessary precautions should be taken to avoid mosquitoes.