10 20

Patients and methods: Between January 2015 and January 2020, 7,923 patients (5,509 males, 2,414 females; mean age: 57.7±12.4 years; range, 26 to 93 years) who underwent cardiac surgery were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into two groups: SR group (n=166) and control group (n=7,757). A 1:1 propensity score matching (PSM) was performed to balance the effect of selection bias and the influence of potential confounding factors. Finally, a total of 165 patients in each group were evaluated. The pre-, intra- and postoperative data of both groups were analyzed.

Results: No significant differences were found between the matched groups in terms of in-hospital mortality (p=0.46), length of intensive care unit (ICU) stay (p=0.96), prolonged ventilation (p=0.88), and sternal wound infection with dehiscence (p=0.12). However, the SR group exhibited significantly lower hematocrit and albumin levels (p=0.004, p=0.001).

Conclusion: Although SRs have access to the comprehensive healthcare system of the Republic of Türkiye, they still face challenges such as language barriers, cultural differences, and limited understanding of the healthcare system. Nevertheless, early mortality and morbidity outcomes in cardiac surgery for Syrian refugees are comparable to non-refugees.