No Apparent Change in Child Abuse Rates in New Zealand

New Zealand is one of the six countries where there is no clear evidence of a decrease in child maltreatment over the past two decades.

The study was led by Professor Ruth Gilbert from the University College London Institute of Child Health (ICH). Violent deaths in children, hospitalized injuries related to maltreatment, and involvement with child protection agencies were the three indicators that were used to assess child abuse. Researchers found no apparent change in child maltreatment rates in New Zealand.

The results show a need to focus on preventing factors that contributed to child maltreatment. It is being suggested that increasing the sharing of data between government agencies could help reduce levels of child maltreatment.

Professor Gilbert said, "For too long, policy has been driven by high-profile deaths of individual children. We need to invest in population-based data to inform policy and to monitor trends. We also need to be able to link health and social care data to understand which professionals are seeing these children.''

The study results are published in the Lancet.

Source: Medindia

Strict Screening Needed To Pick More Cases of Child Abuse

Recent study drew attention towards the importance of sticking by the screening guidelines in detecting cases of child abuse.

Child Abuse - When God’s Gifts Land in Devils’ Clutches

Every second child in India had been a victim of some form of abuse. Worse still, more than 50% of the children had been subjected to sexual abuse of different kinds.

Papillomavirus no more a sure sign of child abuse

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is one of the most common causes of sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the world.

Child Abuse – Conference Calls for Multi-Disciplinary Action and Protection for Children

Protecting children from abuse and empowering them to exercise their right to safeguard their integrity was the highlight of the National Conference on Child Abuse in India.

Christianson Syndrome

Christianson syndrome is a condition that occurs due to mutations (abnormal changes) in the gene SLC9A6 that is present on X chromosome. It primarily affects the nervous system.