Child Abuse (cont.)

Medical Author:

John Mersch, MD, FAAP

John Mersch, MD, FAAP

Dr. Mersch received his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, San Diego, and prior to entering the University Of Southern California School Of Medicine, was a graduate student (attaining PhD candidate status) in Experimental Pathology at USC. He attended internship and residency at Children's Hospital Los Angeles.

View Full Profile

Medical Editor:

William C. Shiel Jr., MD, FACP, FACR

William C. Shiel Jr., MD, FACP, FACR

Dr. Shiel received a Bachelor of Science degree with honors from the University of Notre Dame. There he was involved in research in radiation biology and received the Huisking Scholarship. After graduating from St. Louis University School of Medicine, he completed his Internal Medicine residency and Rheumatology fellowship at the University of California, Irvine. He is board-certified in Internal Medicine and Rheumatology.

View Full Profile

In this Article

• What is the scope of the child abuse problem?
• What age child is abused?
• Are girls more often abused than boys?
• Is the pattern of abuse different for girls and boys?
• What is known about the perpetrators of child abuse?
• Is there an association between poverty and child abuse?
• Who abuses children?
• What is child abuse?
• What does the term child neglect include?
• What actions are viewed as physical child abuse?
• What constitutes emotional child abuse?
• What is sexual child abuse?
• What causes child abuse deaths?
• What factors predispose a person to child abuse?
• How is alleged child abuse evaluated?
• How is child abuse treated?
• How can child abuse be prevented?
• What more can be done to prevent child neglect?
• Are people who were abused as children more likely to become criminals later in life?
• Child Abuse At A Glance
• Patient Comments: Child Abuse - Experience
• Child Abuse Index

According to a 2005 study sponsored by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), maltreatment in childhood increases the likelihood of arrest as a juvenile by 59% and as an adult by 28%. Abuse as a child also increases the prospect of arrest for a violent crime by 30%.

For females, being abused or neglected in childhood raises the likelihood of arrest by 77%. A related 1994 NIJ study indicated that children who were sexually abused were 28 times more likely than a control group of non-abused children to be arrested for prostitution as an adult.

A 1997 U.S. Department of Justice study sampled 1,000 urban youths in seventh and eighth grades. Childhood abuse and neglect provided a 25% increased risk factor for serious delinquency (assaults, drug use), poor school performance, symptoms of mental illness, and pregnancy. Interestingly, the risk of lesser forms of delinquency (for example, underage drinking) were not increased.

• Child abuse is a serious national problem involving all economic, ethnic, racial, and religious groups.
• Children are abused predominantly by parents, but other caregivers (babysitter) are not infrequent offenders.
• The major types of child abuse are physical, emotional, sexual, and neglect. Child neglect is the most frequent type of child abuse and the most lethal.
• If any suspicion of child abuse or neglect exists, a report should be filed with the appropriate agency. Good-faith reports are immune from prosecution. A local system for timely investigation and evaluation should be incorporated in all cases of child maltreatment.
• Prevention (education and counseling) is the best approach for the management of child abuse and neglect.

For additional information on child abuse, neglect, and child welfare, try the following sites:

Administration for Children and Families
(http://www.acf.dhhs.gov)

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) is the agency within the Department of Health and Human Services that brings together the broad range of federal programs and services that address the needs of children and families.

Children's Bureau
(http://www.acf.dhhs.gov/programs/cb/)

The Children's Bureau is the oldest federal agency specifically charged with the responsibility of looking after the well-being of the nation's children. The bureau helps the states to deliver child-welfare services, such as the protection of children and the strengthening of families (child protective services), family preservation and support, foster care, adoption, and independent living.

Missing Children Web Page
(http://www.missingkids.com/)

Search the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's (NCMEC) database of current missing children cases and view images of missing children. Their missing children forum, another site feature, aids in finding missing and exploited children, supporting families whose children are missing, and offering child-safety assistance. Members can speak with each other and with NCMEC representatives about the images in the forum's libraries.

National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information (NCADI)
(http://www.health.org)

One of the largest federal clearinghouses and the world's largest resource for information and materials on substance abuse, the National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information (NCADI) is the information arm of the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (Department of Health and Human Services). Services offered by NCADI include: an information services staff to respond to public inquiries on alcohol, tobacco, and drugs (ATD); distribution of over 450 free or low-cost materials on ATD, such as fact sheets, posters, monographs, and video tapes; referrals to prevention, intervention, and treatment resources; access to the Prevention Materials and the Treatment Resources Databases; and federal grant announcements for ATD-related projects.

National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS)
(http://www.ncjrs.org)

Visit the National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS) Web site, Justice Information Center (JIC), for a collection of clearinghouses providing information on criminal and juvenile justice issues. The categories offered are: corrections, courts, crime prevention, criminal-justice statistics, drugs and crime, international, juvenile justice, law enforcement, research and evaluation, and victims. In addition, JIC offers "New This Week" and "Current Highlights" pages.

National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect
(http://www.ndacan.cornell.edu)

The mission of the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect is to facilitate the secondary analysis of research data relevant to the study of child abuse and neglect. The archive's primary activity is the acquisition, preservation, and dissemination of high-quality data sets related to the study of child abuse and neglect. Their Web site provides a listing and brief description of all the studies in the archive ,along with ordering information. Information on archive publications and upcoming training institutes and workshops is also offered.

National Indian Child Welfare Association
(http://www.nicwa.org)

The National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) serves American Indian tribes throughout the country by helping to strengthen and enhance their capacity to deliver quality child-welfare services. Among the activities in which NICWA engages are community development, public-policy development, and information exchange.

Child Welfare Information Gateway: Statistics and Interventions
(http://www.childwelfare.gov)

Previously, this organization was called the National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information. It's an excellent resource covering prevention, responding to child abuse, and supporting and preserving families.

References:

Child Maltreatment -- 2005
U.S. Department of Human and Health Services
http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/pubs/cm05/cm05.pdf

American Humane Association
http://www.americanhumane.org

Physical Abuse in Children: Epidemiology and Clinical Manifestations
http://www.UptoDate.com

Child Abuse: Social and Medicolegal Issues
http://www.UptoDate.com

Child Neglect and Emotional Abuse
http://www.UptoDate.com

Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy
http://www.UptoDate.com