Surgical management of Syria’s war casualties: experience from a French surgical team deployed in the Zaatari refugee camp (Jordan)

Purpose In August 2012, the Zaatari refugee camp was opened in Jordan under the auspices of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. France deployed there a surgical facility to treat victims of war trauma. Methods After a phase of intensive care and resuscitation, surgical management meeting the current standards of war surgery was conducted. Then, patients were transferred to a Jordanian civilian hospital or stayed in the Zaatari camp. A retrospective analysis of patient data was performed. Results From January to March 2013, 95 patients were managed: 85 % of patients were male with a median age of 27 years (4–65); 5 % of patients were