Prevalence of maltreatment in children enrolled in 1st to 4th grades in Ribeirão Preto-SP

Abstract

This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of maltreatment in children, enrolled in 1st to 4th grades in Public and Private schools in Ribeirão Preto-SP, Brazil, using information from the field of education. This is a descriptive study with epidemiological framework. Teachers were interviewed through the instrument Cartilha Epidemiológica (Epidemiological Booklet). It collected information on the number and characteristics of maltreated children attending these teachers' classes. An epidemiological descriptive approach was used to analyze data and 151 teachers, who were responsible for 3,885 children, answered the instrument. The results appointed a prevalence of 3.9%. The most frequent types of child maltreatment were: Emotional Maltreatment, Emotional Abandonment and Lack of Parental Supervision. Official data indicates a prevalence of 0.36%, which is in agreement with literature suggestions that official data report just the tip of iceberg.