Israeli and American airstrikes have devastated Iran’s healthcare system, destroying key pharmaceutical factories and strategic research institutes.
With severe shortages of basic supplies, outbreaks of infectious disease among millions of displaced people, and toxic air pollution choking the capital, experts are warning of a humanitarian crisis on a massive scale. Hospitals have been reduced to makeshift field clinics, while millions of patients with chronic illnesses have been left without basic care.
The humanitarian picture emerging from Tehran and other major Iranian cities is deeply alarming. Following intense fighting and widespread airstrikes, national infrastructure has been pushed to the brink of collapse, fueling a health emergency that threatens millions of civilians, even far from the front lines.
Hospitals in the capital, once considered among the region’s most advanced, are now operating in near darkness, without anesthesia, without antibiotics, and under crushing overcrowding that prevents proper treatment even for critically wounded patients.
One of the heaviest blows to Iran’s medical system has been the strike on strategic research and production institutions. The Pasteur Institute in Tehran, the center of the country’s vaccine system and epidemiological research network, has been almost completely disabled. The loss is both symbolic and practical. Without the institute, Iran’s ability to track disease outbreaks or independently produce vaccines has been effectively erased.
Reports from the ground indicate that civilian medical centers have also suffered major damage. Extensive destruction was reported at the Delaram Sina Psychiatric Hospital and at the Laser and Plasma Research Center at Shahid Beheshti University.
As of mid-April 2026, the World Health Organization estimated that about 334 emergency centers and clinics across the country had been damaged or taken out of service. Prolonged blackouts caused by strikes on energy networks have turned operating rooms into death traps, with generators running only intermittently because of severe fuel shortages.
Millions displaced, epidemics looming
For years, Iran prided itself on producing around 90% of its pharmaceutical needs domestically. But that strength has become a critical vulnerability. Strikes on industrial zones severely damaged major pharmaceutical plants, including the now-defunct Tofigh Daru, which had produced life-saving cancer drugs and essential anesthetics.
The result is a deep medical void. Patients suffering from cancer, kidney disease, or diabetes are now finding themselves without treatment. Shortages of insulin and blood pressure medication are already claiming lives among the elderly.
The collapse of the Iranian rial, combined with a lack of funding and tightening sanctions, has prevented authorities from purchasing replacement supplies on the global market. “We are witnessing silent mortality,” warned officials at Doctors Without Borders (MSF). “People are not dying only from shrapnel; they are dying because they do not have a simple blood pressure pill.”
The epidemiological situation in April 2026 is causing deep concern among public health experts worldwide. About 3.2 million people have been displaced from their homes since fighting began in late February. Many are crowded into temporary shelters, metro stations, and tent camps in southern Tehran, where sanitation conditions are poor or nonexistent.
The extreme overcrowding, combined with damage to water and sewage infrastructure, has created ideal conditions for disease outbreaks. Reports already indicate a sharp rise in measles and hepatitis cases among children. Iran’s Health Ministry, struggling to function, has been unable to maintain an organized vaccination campaign, and fears are growing that these outbreaks could spread to neighboring countries.
Beyond infectious disease, residents of Tehran are also facing a serious environmental threat. Fires at oil reserves and infrastructure sites have created thick clouds of soot and toxic air pollution hanging over the city. The few hospitals still functioning report a dramatic rise in patients suffering from severe respiratory problems, skin irritation, and eye injuries, especially among infants and the elderly.
Figures from OCHA, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, paint a grim picture. As of April 7, 2026, more than 2,360 civilians had been killed and over 32,000 wounded. But perhaps the most painful toll is among medical personnel: 24 healthcare workers were killed and dozens wounded while trying to save lives under fire.
Cash shortages and the collapse of the banking system are preventing hospitals from purchasing even basic disposable supplies such as bandages, disinfectants, and syringes. Surgeons are sometimes forced to use equipment that has undergone improvised sterilization, leading to deadly post-operative infections.
Despite the declaration of a temporary ceasefire that began on April 8, international aid has arrived only in limited amounts. Logistical barriers and extensive damage to airports and access roads have made it difficult to deliver medical supplies in the quantities required.
Experts estimate that even if the fighting stopped completely today, rebuilding Iran’s healthcare system would take decades. Tehran is now operating under a brutal wartime medical economy, where strict triage gives priority to young trauma casualties over all other patients.
For chronic patients, pregnant women, and children in need of routine care, April 2026 may be remembered as the month the system meant to protect them simply ceased to exist.