#orthopaedics

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Hospitals in Aleppo do not have enough room for new patients in the wake of last week's devastating earthquake, a doctor in the Syrian city said. At the Al-Razi Hospital there are too many beds to fit into the wards. They reach end-to-end through corridors and into the chilly courtyard. "We weren't able to discharge patients from the hospitals even after treating them. The city is damaged and there are no places for them to go," said Dr Nizar Suleiman, the head of orthopaedics. "Huge numbers of patients came in a short period of time. We have a huge shortage in medicines, so it's really worrying. For example, we suffer from a lack of medical equipment to treat fractures. We already suffer from this shortage because of the crisis, and the siege [sanctions] make it worse." More than 4,400 deaths and 7,600 injuries have been reported in north-western Syria since a 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck neighbouring southern Turkey on 6 February, according to the UN.

17/09/2021