Perinatal Determinants of Child Maltreatment in Japan
Haruna Kawaguchi1, Takeo Fujiwara2, Yoko Okamoto1
1Department of Maternal Fetal Medicine, Osaka Women's and Children's Hospital, Osaka, Japan.
Insights
Identifying perinatal risk factors for child maltreatment is crucial for early intervention. Young maternal age, unmarried status, maternal mental health issues, and late or insufficient prenatal care are significant risk factors.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Maternal and Child Health
- Pediatrics
Background:
- Child maltreatment has severe, long-lasting health consequences.
- Early intervention requires identifying perinatal risk factors.
- Understanding these factors is key to preventing child maltreatment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate perinatal risk factors associated with child maltreatment.
- To identify specific maternal and paternal factors during pregnancy.
- To inform early intervention strategies.
Main Methods:
- A case-control study design was employed.
- Data were collected from the Maternal and Child Health Handbook.
- Multiple logistic regression analysis assessed the association between perinatal factors and child maltreatment.
Main Results:
- Teenage pregnancy, maternal age 20-24, and large paternal age gap were significant risk factors.
- Unmarried mothers, maternal mental disorders, and late/infrequent prenatal care increased risk.
- Low birth weight and congenital diseases in infants were also associated with child maltreatment.
Conclusions:
- Young maternal age, unmarried status, and maternal mental disorders are key indicators.
- Late or insufficient prenatal care and infant health issues (low birth weight, congenital disease) are associated with maltreatment.
- These findings enable the identification of high-risk families for targeted support.
Abstract:
Background: Child maltreatment induces significant health problems, both during childhood and into adulthood. To prevent child maltreatment, it is important to detect perinatal risk factors for earlier intervention. The aim of this study was to evaluate the perinatal risk factors associated with child maltreatment during pregnancy. Methods: A case-control study was conducted to compare perinatal data from the Maternal and Child Health Handbook between the case and control groups. Cases were collected from children registered in two Child Guidance Centers in Japan. The control group consisted of 3.5-year-old children in a city in Osaka Prefecture whose mothers responded to questionnaires containing information from the Maternal and Child Health Handbook. The association between perinatal factors and child maltreatment was assessed using multiple logistic regression analysis. Results: The data of 70 cases and 345 controls were collected. The following were found to be perinatal factors related to child maltreatment: teenage pregnancy (OR: 257.3, 95% CI: 17.3-3832.7), a mother aged 20-24 years (OR: 22.8, 95% CI: 4.4-117.8), a father who is older than the mother by 10 years or more (OR: 14.1, 95% CI: 2.1-94.8), an unmarried mother (OR: 15.7, 95% CI: 2.6-93.6), maternal mental disorder (OR: 48.9, 95% CI: 9.3-258.3), the first maternal prenatal visit being later than 20 weeks (OR: 132, 95% CI: 12.7-1384.7), little prenatal care (<10 visits) (OR: 21.4, 95% CI: 2.9-157.1), a low-birth-weight baby (OR: 5.1, 95% CI: 1.1-24.1), and congenital disease (OR: 7.9, 95% CI: 1.1-56.4). Conclusions: This study revealed that young mothers, fathers much older than mothers, unmarried mothers, and maternal mental disorder, mothers with late first visit or little perinatal care, and low-birth-weight babies and babies with congenital disease were associated with child maltreatment. These findings can be used to detect high-risk families for child maltreatment during or after pregnancy.
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