Physical child abuse and self-reported health concerns : A case-control study including police-reported cases and unreported controls
(2025) In PLOS ONE 20(9).- Abstract
BACKGROUND: Child abuse continues to pose a significant threat to children's health. The repercussions of abuse are profound, impacting the child's physical, social, and emotional well-being, with potential long-term effects that may extend into adulthood. To assist in identifying health concerns in children associated with exposure to physical abuse, a health questionnaire was developed to be used in the setting of a forensic examination.
OBJECTIVE: This study examines whether children suspected of being exposed to physical violence report more health-related concerns compared to unexposed controls.
PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: The case group consists of children suspected of being exposed to physical violence, with reports to... (More)
BACKGROUND: Child abuse continues to pose a significant threat to children's health. The repercussions of abuse are profound, impacting the child's physical, social, and emotional well-being, with potential long-term effects that may extend into adulthood. To assist in identifying health concerns in children associated with exposure to physical abuse, a health questionnaire was developed to be used in the setting of a forensic examination.
OBJECTIVE: This study examines whether children suspected of being exposed to physical violence report more health-related concerns compared to unexposed controls.
PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: The case group consists of children suspected of being exposed to physical violence, with reports to the Copenhagen police. Cases were examined from April 1, 2020, to December 31, 2023, at the Child Advocacy Centre (CAC) in Copenhagen, totaling 374 examinations. A control group of children aged 4-14 years with no suspicion of abuse was established through recruitment via social media platforms (Facebook, LinkedIn), posters, and word of mouth. Controls were examined from November 1, 2023, to September 30, 2024, totaling 122 examinations.
METHODS: Children underwent a standardized forensic examination, which included a health interview reviewing health behaviors (e.g., diet, toothbrushing, and sleep patterns) and well-being (liking school/preschool, having friends, and trusted adults).
RESULTS: Overall, cases reported significantly more concerns than controls on several assessed items. With multivariate logistic regression, adjusted for all significant covariates and stratified by age, two concerns remained significant. Cases aged 8-14 years, had significantly higher odds of brushing their teeth once daily or less (OR: 3.85; CI: 1.47-10.12) and reported low enjoyment of school (OR: 3.74; CI: 1.03-13.53).
CONCLUSIONS: Health interviews may support the identification of children at risk. However, the statistical power was limited, and the findings require validation in larger populations.
(Less)
- author
- Justesen, Daniella ; Wingren, Carl Johan LU ; Slot, Liselott ; Balsløv, Maria ; Thanning, Andrea Lykke and Banner, Jytte
- publishing date
- 2025
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Humans, Child, Female, Male, Child Abuse/psychology, Adolescent, Self Report, Case-Control Studies, Child, Preschool, Police, Denmark, Surveys and Questionnaires, Health Behavior
- in
- PLOS ONE
- volume
- 20
- issue
- 9
- article number
- e0330601
- publisher
- Public Library of Science (PLoS)
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:105014730712
- pmid:40892786
- ISSN
- 1932-6203
- DOI
- 10.1371/journal.pone.0330601
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- no
- additional info
- Copyright: © 2025 Justesen et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
- id
- ac6a7ae8-2f3d-4ca3-bdf7-400154bf83f0
- date added to LUP
- 2025-11-25 07:42:11
- date last changed
- 2025-11-26 04:01:15
@article{ac6a7ae8-2f3d-4ca3-bdf7-400154bf83f0,
abstract = {{<p>BACKGROUND: Child abuse continues to pose a significant threat to children's health. The repercussions of abuse are profound, impacting the child's physical, social, and emotional well-being, with potential long-term effects that may extend into adulthood. To assist in identifying health concerns in children associated with exposure to physical abuse, a health questionnaire was developed to be used in the setting of a forensic examination.</p><p>OBJECTIVE: This study examines whether children suspected of being exposed to physical violence report more health-related concerns compared to unexposed controls.</p><p>PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: The case group consists of children suspected of being exposed to physical violence, with reports to the Copenhagen police. Cases were examined from April 1, 2020, to December 31, 2023, at the Child Advocacy Centre (CAC) in Copenhagen, totaling 374 examinations. A control group of children aged 4-14 years with no suspicion of abuse was established through recruitment via social media platforms (Facebook, LinkedIn), posters, and word of mouth. Controls were examined from November 1, 2023, to September 30, 2024, totaling 122 examinations.</p><p>METHODS: Children underwent a standardized forensic examination, which included a health interview reviewing health behaviors (e.g., diet, toothbrushing, and sleep patterns) and well-being (liking school/preschool, having friends, and trusted adults).</p><p>RESULTS: Overall, cases reported significantly more concerns than controls on several assessed items. With multivariate logistic regression, adjusted for all significant covariates and stratified by age, two concerns remained significant. Cases aged 8-14 years, had significantly higher odds of brushing their teeth once daily or less (OR: 3.85; CI: 1.47-10.12) and reported low enjoyment of school (OR: 3.74; CI: 1.03-13.53).</p><p>CONCLUSIONS: Health interviews may support the identification of children at risk. However, the statistical power was limited, and the findings require validation in larger populations.</p>}},
author = {{Justesen, Daniella and Wingren, Carl Johan and Slot, Liselott and Balsløv, Maria and Thanning, Andrea Lykke and Banner, Jytte}},
issn = {{1932-6203}},
keywords = {{Humans; Child; Female; Male; Child Abuse/psychology; Adolescent; Self Report; Case-Control Studies; Child, Preschool; Police; Denmark; Surveys and Questionnaires; Health Behavior}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{9}},
publisher = {{Public Library of Science (PLoS)}},
series = {{PLOS ONE}},
title = {{Physical child abuse and self-reported health concerns : A case-control study including police-reported cases and unreported controls}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0330601}},
doi = {{10.1371/journal.pone.0330601}},
volume = {{20}},
year = {{2025}},
}