Neonatal outcomes in Syrian and other refugees treated in a tertiary hospital in Turkey

Abstract

Background/aim: Turkey accepts refugees from many countries, principally Syria. More than 2.7 million refugees live in Turkey. Weevaluated the neonatal outcomes of refugees.Materials and methods: We retrospectively reviewed the clinical and demographic characteristics of refugee infants born in our hospitalbetween August 2013 and September 2016.Results: Refugees (718 Syrian, 136 Iraqi, 32 Afghani, and 21 of other nationalities) accounted for 907 of 49,413 births. The mean refugeematernal age was lower than that of Turkish women, whereas the gestational age (GA) and birthweight were similar. Refugees requiredfewer cesarean sections but exhibited greater small- and large-for-GA rates (P < 0.05). Refugee and Turkish infant mortality rates didnot differ significantly (0.8 vs. 0.4%). Eighty-nine (12.3%) refugee neonates and 6682 (13.5%) Turkish neonates were admitted to ourneonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Jaundice and perinatal asphyxia were significantly more common in refugees, whereas respiratorydistress syndrome, GA ≤32 weeks, and infant birthweight