Civilians in need of dire medical aid in Syria's besieged Ghouta

12-year old Rihaf suffers from cerebral palsy, a condition that inhibits her brain's growth.

The room is dark because there isn't much electricity in eastern Ghouta.

Her mother used to give her honey, milk and other nutritious food but not anymore.

Rihaf used to be well and was going to the school, until there was a lack of food and medicine.

“My husband can't work and because of the high prices we can't afford much,” Um Rida told Al Jazeera.

This has been the case for the last four years, after the Syrian government forces besieged the area, which is home to 400,000 people.

Boiled corn is the most popular dish in the city these days. For larger families, corn broth is available with the luxury of salt for those who can afford it.

The Syrian government has allowed in some aid but the United Nations (UN) says it is only enough for ten percent of the besieged people.

This year, the Syrian regime approved around a quarter of the UN's request to deliver assistance.

The UN says the plight of civilians is an outrage and that it might constitute a war crime.

The lack of food and medicine have forced more people towards hospital.

In July, doctors identified 452 people who still need to be evacuated as the UN waits approval from the Syrian government, nine of them have died waiting.

Faced with delays, 29 among them were identified as high risk if they are not given medical care soon.

The situation is so desperate that after operations, doctors need to reuse single-use items.

What is regarded as medical waste everywhere else is sterilized and used again in besieged Douma.

Tubes and latex gloves that hospitals throw away are limited so they are reused to save another life.

Doctors don’t know if and when more supplies will come in.

The staff says they are also saving other single-use medical supplies.

"We clean them because the supplies are not available here and they are not coming in with UN aid,” Omar Mohammad from the Damascus Specialist Hospital said. “We have also stopped some surgeries because of a lack of anesthetics.”

Parents say there is no food or medicine for their starving and sick children, so they leave their infants to suck on their thumbs, hoping that at least for a while they will think it is food.