NCJ Number
234001
Journal
Child Abuse & Neglect Volume: 34 Issue: 11 Dated: November 2010 Pages: 813-822
Date Published
November 2010
Length
10 pages
Annotation
In order to determine the rate and risk of clinical and personality disorders diagnosed in childhood and adulthood among those known to have been sexually abused as children, this study linked the forensic medical records of 2,759 children sexually abused between 1964 and 1995 with a public psychiatric database between 12 and 43 years later.
Abstract
The study confirmed that child sexual abuse is a substantial risk factor for a range of mental disorders in both childhood and adulthood. A lifetime record of contact with public mental health services was found in 23.3 percent of cases compared to 7.7 percent of control subjects matched on gender and age groupings drawn from the general population. The rate of contact with public mental health services was 3.65 times higher (95 percent Cl, 3.09-4.32, p less than 0.001). Child sexual abuse was estimated to account for approximately 7.83 percent of mental health contacts. Having been sexually abused as a child increased a person's risk for the following mental health disorders: psychosis, affective disorder, anxiety, substance abuse, and personality disorders. Rates of clinical disorders diagnosed in adulthood and childhood remained significantly higher among those sexually abused as children. Individuals who were an older age when sexually abused and those victimized by severe sexual abuse that involved penetration or multiple offenders were at greater risk for psychopathology. These findings suggest that those treating victims of sexual abuse must assess not only disorders associated with trauma, but also low prevalence disorders such as psychosis. 4 tables and 61 references