Vulnerable in silence: Paediatric health in the Ukrainian crisis

Wireko Andrew Awuah; Jyi Cheng Ng; Aashna Mehta; Rohan Yarlagadda; Kai Sheng Khor; Toufik Abdul-Rahman; Aysha Hussain; Mrinmoy Kundu; Meghdeep Sen; Mohammad Mehedi Hasan

doi:10.1016/j.amsu.2022.104369

Vulnerable in silence: Paediatric health in the Ukrainian crisis

Ann Med Surg (Lond). 2022 Aug 17:82:104369. doi: 10.1016/j.amsu.2022.104369. eCollection 2022 Oct.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Sumy State University, Sumy, Ukraine, Sumy, Ukraine.
² Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Malaysia.
³ University of Debrecen-Faculty of Medicine, Debrecen, 4032, Hungary.
⁴ Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine, Stratford, NJ, USA.
⁵ Ross University School of Medicine, USA.
⁶ Institute of Medical Sciences and SUM Hospital, Bhubaneswar, India.
⁷ American University of Antigua, St John's, Antigua and Barbuda.
⁸ Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Life Science, Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, Tangail, Bangladesh.

Abstract

The Russian invasion of Ukraine is a humanitarian disaster. It has a wide-ranging impact on the livelihood and the health of those affected by the war. In the midst of constant shelling and casualties, children are more vulnerable to injuries, infections, malnutrition, and trauma, all of which can have serious consequences for their physical and mental health. Children, unlike adults, are simply subjected to the horrors of war with no pre-existing ability to deal with the consequences. We hope to highlight the effects of the current Ukrainian war on the health of the paediatric population, with a particular emphasis on surgical care, cancer care, infectious disease, to name a few. We hope to help contextualize future data and encourage the development of a system to protect and serve the war's most vulnerable population.

Keywords: Armed conflicts; Child health; Paediatrics; Public health; Refugees; Ukraine.

Publication types

Editorial