An overview of the health status of Syrian refugee children in a tertiary hospital in Turkey

Ibrahim Hakan Bucak; Habip Almis; Samet Benli; Mehmet Turgut

doi:10.4103/ajm.AJM_17_17

Avicenna Journal of Medicine, Table of Contents

CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Avicenna J Med 2017; 07(03): 110-114
DOI: 10.4103/ajm.AJM_17_17

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

An overview of the health status of Syrian refugee children in a tertiary hospital in Turkey

Authors

Ibrahim Hakan Bucak

Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, Adiyaman University, Adiyaman, Turkey
Habip Almis

Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, Adiyaman University, Adiyaman, Turkey
Samet Benli

Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, Adiyaman University, Adiyaman, Turkey
Mehmet Turgut

Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, Adiyaman University, Adiyaman, Turkey

Abstract

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Abstract

Objective: Migration is a problem affecting all family members, but particularly children. Child refugees are the highest risk group for the health systems of receiving countries. We investigated the health of 104 Syrian child refugees presenting to a tertiary hospital in Turkey. Settings and Design: A retrospective study was conducted in the pediatric clinic. Materials and Methods: The medical files of Syrian refugee children (0–18 years) presenting to Adiyaman University Hospital, Pediatric Clinic between 01 and 30 November 2015, were investigated. Demographic data, body measurements, and laboratory results obtained from patients' medical records were evaluated. Results: Mean age of patients was 53.5 ± 49.6 (2–198) months; 63 were male and 41 were female. Seventy-two patients (69.2%) were under 5 years of age. Weight in 20 patients (19.2%), height in 33 (31.7%), head circumference in 2 (1.9%), and body mass index in 7 (6.7%) were below the third percentile. All patients with body weight below the third percentile had chronic malnutrition. Anemia was present in 35 (50%) of the 70 patients for whom complete blood count data were available. Conclusion: Health workers involved with Syrian refugee children must consider the two preventable conditions; malnutrition and anemia.

Keywords

Anemia - children - refugee - short stature - undernutrition

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References

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