Prevalence of Sexual Abuse Among Secondary School Students in Saudi Arabia

Child maltreatment and protection in the Arab Gulf Cooperation Council countries: A scoping review

BACKGROUND

Research on child maltreatment and protection in the Arab Gulf Cooperation Council countries-Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE)-is limited but growing, as is child protection as a sector.

OBJECTIVES

We aimed to identify themes and gaps in existing research on child maltreatment and protection, identify opportunities for building capacity in research and practice.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

N/A.

METHODS

We conducted a scoping review of empirical studies published in peer-reviewed journals in English and Arabic and reported methods and findings according to the PRISMA-ScR reporting protocol. Articles were coded by country, topic of research, and type of abuse studied, if any.

RESULTS

Our database search returned 6109 articles and 160 articles were included in our review. Themes included (1) prevalence, incidence, and characteristics of maltreatment, (2) outcomes associated with maltreatment, (3) attitudes, awareness, and reporting, (4) accidental injury and death potentially associated with neglect, (5) policy and practice. Eighty-seven articles studied Saudi Arabia, while 28 studied the UAE, 21 Kuwait, 13 Qatar, 12 Oman, and 11 Bahrain. Physical abuse was studied in 77 articles, followed by sexual abuse in 54 articles and emotional abuse in 54.

CONCLUSION

Although the medical community produces an encouraging volume of child maltreatment research, gaps remain. Intervention research is lacking, and further inquiry into family dynamics, culture, and spirituality could inform the development of effective interventions. Cross-sectoral collaboration among education, social work, law enforcement, and healthcare is also needed to safeguard children's rights in the GCC.

Awareness of Child Abuse and Neglect Among the General Public in Saudi Arabia: A Systematic Review

Child abuse represents a serious problem worldwide. In Arab countries, the problem is complicated because abuse may be perceived as a method of discipline. This review aimed to describe awareness of the public in Saudi Arabia regarding child abuse. A search was performed in the databases of MEDLINE/PubMed, Scopus, Academic Search Complete (EBSCOhost), and Web of Science for articles published in English from the 1^st of January, 2000, to the 14^th of November, 2022. The search was conducted during the period from the 7^th to the 14^th of November 2022. The used search words were {"Child Abuse"} AND {"Saudi Arabia"} AND {"awareness"}. The risk of bias (ROB) was assessed using the Risk of Bias Instrument for Cross-Sectional Surveys of Attitudes and Practices. Six studies were included in this review. Most studies had high ROB in recruiting the participants, designing the questionnaires, and stating the rate of response. The awareness regarding physical abuse seemed fair in most studies, but the awareness about shaken baby syndrome was poor. Also, there was a misconception about the parent's right to discipline their children through corporal punishment. Most participants did not perceive a need for establishing protective laws or programs. Public awareness about emotional abuse and neglect was lower than in cases of physical abuse. The overall knowledge about child abuse seems to be fair, but poor knowledge was observed in some forms, such as shaken baby syndrome. The public concepts about physical punishment and the need for protective laws and programs are also negative and require more efforts to alter them.

Prevalence, Pattern and Predictors of Child Sexual Abuse Among Senior Secondary School Students in Enugu Metropolis

Objective

Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a growing public health concern with health, academic and psychosocial implications. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence, pattern and predictors of CSA among secondary school students.

Methods

This was a cross-sectional study carried out among adolescents in four secondary schools in Enugu Metropolis, Nigeria. A pretested self-administered questionnaire was used to collect information from 325 adolescents and data was analysed with a significance level set at P ≤ 0.05.

Results

The prevalence of CSA in this study was 116 (35.7%). While the majority 20 (40%) of the victims were forced to watch pornography, most of the perpetrators were neighbours 34 (29.3%). A higher proportion of the victims were abused once, 79 (68.1%); when they were between 12 and 18 years old, 62 (53.4%); and at home, 39 (33.6%). Grouped ages, whom the child lived with, father’s and mother’s education, and father’s occupation were statistically significant on bivariate analysis. Predictors of CSA were students in senior secondary school Class 2 (SSS2) and those whose fathers were employed.

Conclusion

Our study revealed a high prevalence of CSA. Comprehensive sexuality education and legislative policies should be implemented to educate adolescents and deter perpetrators.

Osteogenesis Imperfecta and Child Abuse From a Forensic Point of View

Osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) also called brittle bone disease is a rare genetic disorder that results from a defect in type 1 collagen, which is a main structural protein involved in the structure of bones, tendons, ligaments, the dentin layer of teeth, and the sclera of the eye. The defect in this gene is known to be a predisposing factor to fractures. The deficiency in type 1 collagen can be either qualitative or quantitative. Due to this deficiency, the bones become so fragile and can break easily with minimal trauma, which can be coined as “imperfect bone formation.” It also leads to bruises due to the extravasation of blood in the connective tissue of the skin. Sometimes, fractures may result from the routine handling of parents. It can be misleading since fractures are considered to be the second most common sign of child abuse according to the literature. One of the main duties in forensic medicine is examining live victims, which plays a crucial role in confirming a clinical diagnosis. In this paper, a review of the literature was conducted and a summary of reported cases of osteogenesis imperfecta, which were initially diagnosed as child abuse, is presented.

The aim of this study was to review the literature for the prevalence of misdiagnosed cases of osteogenesis imperfecta as child abuse, analyzing various types of presentations in osteogenesis imperfecta that might lead a physician to a wrong diagnosis of child abuse and to clarify common findings and fracture sites seen among patients with osteogenesis imperfecta. The literature review was conducted for both conditions, osteogenesis imperfecta and child abuse, and an evaluation and analysis of case reports and case series regarding osteogenesis imperfecta cases misdiagnosed as child abuse utilizing the PubMed search engine.

Unexplained fractures in children validate the consideration of osteogenesis imperfecta and child physical abuse. A thorough and careful evaluation is recommended as soon as possible because a delay can result in psychological consequences for both the child and the family.

Parent-child communication and preventive practices for child sexual abuse among the general population: A community-based study

Objectives

This study was conducted to investigate parent–child communication and preventive practices centred on child sexual abuse among a cohort of Saudi population.

Methods

A cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out at a single primary health care centre (PHC) in Dammam city, KSA. Parent–child communication and preventive practice were measured by a Self-Reporting Questionnaire with binary answers (yes/no). A total of 400 subjects were selected using a stratified random sampling method.

Results

This study found that 82.5% (n = 329) of parents talked with their children about the latter's bodily privacy. With regard to supervision, most parents (91.7%) said that their children were under their direct supervision all the time. Other variables wear wearing appropriate clothes (94.7%), supervision (93.5%), and teaching a child about their bodily privacy (93.2%). A majority of the respondents (76.2%) were achieved a good preventive practice score, while 95 (23.8%) were observed to have poor communication practice. Logistic regression analyses for gender (p < 0.020; odds ratio 3.031; 95% CI), marital status (p < 0.026; odds ratio 0.081; 95% CI), and family size of more than one wife (p < 0.041; odds ratio 0.081; 95% CI) were significantly associated with good preventive practice.

Conclusion

The study showed that parent–child communication practices in KSA seem to be reasonably good. Further parental supervision of children with respect to sexual abuse needs attention. Parents are advised to communicate with their children and to provide them with information and material on the prevention of sexual abuse.