Clinical Considerations Related to the Behavioral Manifestations of Child Maltreatment

Abstract

Children who have suffered early abuse or neglect may later present with significant health and behavior problems that may persist long after the abusive or neglectful environment has been remediated. Neurobiological research suggests that early maltreatment may result in an altered psychological and physiologic response to stressful stimuli, a response that deleteriously affects the child’s subsequent development. Pediatricians can assist caregivers by helping them recognize the abused or neglected child’s emotional and behavioral responses associated with child maltreatment and guide them in the use of positive parenting strategies, referring the children and families to evidence-based therapeutic treatment and mobilizing available community resources.

Description

Keywords

child abuse, Neurobiological research, pediatricians, caregivers, assessment, response

Citation

Sege, R. D., Amaya-Jackson, L., & AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS Committee on Child Abuse and Neglect, Council on Foster Care, Adoption, and Kinship Care; AMERICAN ACADEMY OF CHILD AND ADOLESCENT PSYCHIATRY Committee on Child Maltreatment and Violence; NATIONAL CENTER FOR CHILD TRAUMATIC STRESS (2017). Clinical Considerations Related to the Behavioral Manifestations of Child Maltreatment. Pediatrics, 139(4), e 20170100.

DOI