School of Dentistry, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, RS, Brazil.
Braz Oral Res. 2012 Jan-Feb;26(1):5-11. doi: 10.1590/s1806-83242012000100002.
Child abuse is a serious public health problem and affects the victims' physical and mental health and development. The aims of this study were two-fold: to assess the attitudes and perceptions of dentists regarding child abuse, and to investigate professional characteristics associated with the identification of suspected child abuse. A questionnaire was sent to the 276 dentists of Pelotas, RS, Brazil, and 187 (68.0%) were returned. Demographic characteristics and profiles of the dentists, and information about their knowledge and attitudes regarding child abuse were collected. Descriptive analysis was performed, and associations were tested by chi-square and Fisher's exact tests. From all dentists surveyed, 123 (71.9%) reported providing treatment for children. Most dentists believed they could detect cases of child abuse (78.7%), but 85.7% had never suspected it. Among those who did suspect, 76.0% did not report the cases to authorities. No differences were observed between sexes, years of graduation, types of licenses, and the frequency at which children were treated. A higher proportion of dentists working at university had suspected child abuse. Even though dentists considered themselves able to identify suspicious cases, only a small percentage reported those suspicions, indicating a lack of awareness by these professionals in the adoption of protective measures for victims of aggression. It is necessary that dental professionals receive interdisciplinary training to enhance their ability to care for and protect children.
儿童虐待是一个严重的公共卫生问题，影响受害者的身心健康和发展。本研究的目的有两个：评估牙医对儿童虐待的态度和看法，以及调查与识别疑似儿童虐待相关的专业特征。我们向巴西佩洛塔斯的 276 名牙医发送了一份问卷，其中 187 名（68.0%）牙医进行了回复。收集了牙医的人口统计学特征和概况，以及他们关于儿童虐待的知识和态度信息。进行了描述性分析，并通过卡方检验和 Fisher 确切检验测试了关联。在所调查的所有牙医中，有 123 名（71.9%）报告为儿童提供了治疗。大多数牙医认为他们能够发现儿童虐待的病例（78.7%），但 85.7%的牙医从未怀疑过这种情况。在那些怀疑的牙医中，有 76.0%的牙医没有向当局报告这些病例。性别、毕业年限、许可证类型和治疗儿童的频率之间没有差异。在大学工作的牙医中，有更高比例的人怀疑存在儿童虐待。尽管牙医认为自己能够识别可疑病例，但只有一小部分牙医报告了这些怀疑，这表明这些专业人员在采取保护受攻击儿童的措施方面缺乏意识。有必要对牙科专业人员进行跨学科培训，以提高他们照顾和保护儿童的能力。
