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Violence against children: further evidence suggesting a relationship between burns, scalds, and the additional injuries

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Abstract

Up to 22 % of all child maltreatment cases involve non-accidental burns or scalds. In the time period of 2000 until 2007, 20 children with non-accidental burns and scalds in conjunction with other mechanisms of injury were examined at children’s hospitals in Hamburg and at the Institute of Legal Medicine, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, by experts in forensic medicine. The fact that these children presented with additional injuries due to blunt and sharp force and sometimes had signs of neglect emphasize the urgent need for a multidisciplinary cooperation between pediatricians and forensic medical experts to ensure the early identification and prevention of child maltreatment. A new approach for Germany, enforcing mandatory child well-being examinations is discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Legal Medicine, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Butenfeld 34, 22529, Hamburg, Germany

    Dragana Seifert, Julia Krohn, Mandi Larson, Andrea Lambe, Klaus Püschel & Henrike Kurth

  2. Department of Pediatrics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Martinistraße 52, 20246, Hamburg, Germany

    Henrike Kurth

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  1. Dragana Seifert
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  2. Julia Krohn
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  3. Mandi Larson
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  4. Andrea Lambe
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  5. Klaus Püschel
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  6. Henrike Kurth
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Correspondence to Dragana Seifert.

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Seifert, D., Krohn, J., Larson, M. et al. Violence against children: further evidence suggesting a relationship between burns, scalds, and the additional injuries. Int J Legal Med 124, 49–54 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00414-009-0347-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00414-009-0347-6

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