Review of the Russia-Ukraine War and its Impact on Public Health

This paper adopted a desk review of existing information from peer-reviewed articles, scientific reports, and grey literature through triangulation of data sources. This article aimed to provide a concise and comprehensive overview of some environmental and public health problems resulting from the Russia-Ukraine war.

Just sixteen months into the face-off, the crisis has been characterized by diverse public health challenges such as environmental-induced pollution; nuclear and technological threat; energy crisis; food insecurity; humanitarian castatropic; and the likelihood of a surge in COVID-19 and other infectious diseases. The escalation of conflict in Ukraine has caused civilian casualities, forcing people to flee their homes seeking safety and protection. So far, it is estimated that 9,083 civilians have been killed and 15,779 injured in Ukraine; with over 18 millions refugees diplayed within and outside Ukraine as of 19th June, 2023. Furthermore, the war has notably triggered food price spike, economic pressure and social stress in most part of Africa, with the inclination to precipitate political upheaval especially in volatile countries in the continent. We opined that prompt attention should be given by international bodies and humanitarian agencies to restore public health sanity in Ukraine by providing critical protection services and humanitarian assistance. Conclusively, a cease-fire by the belligerent nations remains the only panacea to the highlighted problem.