Age and gender differences in leading reasons for referral to forensic medicine clinic among syrian refugees: A one-year cross-sectional study

Background

Syrian people are the largest refugee population globally and are mainly hosted by the Turkish government. Due to the conflict-driven displacement and their insecure immigration status, many have limited access to basic human needs and develop further mental health issues due to forced displacement. The study aims to identify reasons for forensic evaluation in specific age groups and gender among Syrian refugees.

Methods

For this descriptive study, the demographic and case information of 781 Syrian refugees, consisting of 74.6 % males and 25.4 % females who are referred to the Forensic Medicine Clinics due to five main reasons: psychoactive drug testing, age estimation, DNA analysis, injury assessment, and forensic-psychiatric evaluation were included. The patient information is collected from the patient files. The nominal data were categorized by gender and under 4 different age groups: pediatric (age 0–14), adolescent (age 15–24), young adult (age 25–34), and adult (age 35 and older).

Results

Drug tests were the most prevalent reason in males older than 14 years old (79.7 %), and age estimation, due to early marriages for the female refugees (53.3 %). DNA testing was the primary reason for female adults. The majority of the refugees’ injuries were untreatable with simple medical treatment (SMT) (89.2 % males, 58.8 % females). Pediatric injury assessments demonstrated head injuries (33.3 %), not treatable with SMT (100 %), and 33.3 % of those cases were life-threatening.

Conclusion

Identifying vulnerable individuals among the Syrian refugee population based on demographics, gender, and age will further promote more effective approaches to improve the interventions.