EN
Purpose: To examine the effects of child abuse and the measures taken to protect children at various levels of prevention and intervention. Material and methods: A literature search was performed in the databases of Medline, PubMed, CINAHL, and Google Scholar and in the Greek database Iatrotek based on the years 1992 to 2013. A classic literature search for scientific publications and studies from libraries was also conducted. From a total of 58 studies, only 30 were selected. The criteria for selecting studies were as follows: a) articles written in Greek and English, and b) articles that referred to the subject of this review using the terms child abuse, consequences, prevention, and treatment. Results: Reference is made to the types of child abuse, their impacts, and risk factors that may have a positive or negative role in the occurrence of the phenomenon. Furthermore, the problem of child abuse is approached in terms of the changes and improvements needed at the legislative, social, research, and therapeutic levels in order to provide protection to child victims of abuse. The large number of negative effects on children’s development, which are not limited to childhood but also leave mental and emotional scars into adulthood, underlines the need for stronger measures to reduce the incidence of child abuse. Furthermore, due to the complexity of the phenomenon, it requires a concerted effort and a single plan of action, not only at the regional and national levels but also at the international level. Conclusions: Child abuse has multifactorial causes and requires a concerted effort and a single plan of action, not only at regional and national levels but also at the international level, in order to deal with it. Therefore, at this point, professionals who come into regular contact with children should be alert to possible signs of physical abuse in the children they serve as well as signs of abuse that are less visible, such as behavioral or psychological signs, and these professionals should act in ancillary roles.