Publication:

Emotional, physical and sexual abuse and its psychological impact in children

Background To date, there are no accurate Egyptian epidemiologic studies evaluating the magnitude of the problem of child abuse and its psychological impact. This study was conducted to the pattern of child abuse, its risk factors and its psychological impact in children attending Suez Canal University Hospital.

Methods This cross sectional study involved 735 child and their guardians, they completed questionnaires and Arabic version of Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) checklist through a structured personal interview. They had undergone full history-taking; general examination for signs of violence.

Results All participating children were exposed to violence. Out of the 735 participating children; 53 (7.2%) were exposed to all types of abuse (emotional/physical/sexual). The study shows statistically significant relationships between the type of abuse and each of child's age, residence, father and mother educational levels, family structure, and family history of psychopathology/substance abuse. It also has a significant effect on anxiety, depression, phobia, somatization and obsessive-compulsive disordersConclusions: Child abuse is still prevalent in our culture. It is imperative to support the activities of child abuse prevention in order to decrease its psychological consequence in the community.