Official websites use. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Email: eva. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4. The aim was to analyze perceptions of oral health in adults who have been exposed to child sexual abuse. Eleven participants 10 women , 19 to 56 y of age, who had experienced sexual abuse as children were purposively selected and interviewed in-depth.
The participants were encouraged to describe how they perceived the effect of the sexual abuse on their oral health as adults. The interviews were recorded digitally and transcribed verbatim. The collected material was analyzed according to qualitative content analysis. The findings indicate that the experience of sexual abuse during childhood can have a negative impact on oral care in adulthood.
The informants stated that oral health was of utmost importance but also associated with strong emotions. There were obstacles to maintenance of oral health that were difficult to surmount. Knowledge Transfer Statement:The study provides access to the attitudes of survivors of child sexual abuse regarding oral health and the needs and obstacles that they experience. This is important knowledge for dental professionals to optimize dental care.
Keywords: access to care, anxiety, dental fear, dental public health, dental care, child molestation. In its comment on article 19, the Committee on the Rights of the Child describes sexual abuse as. Many children experience sexual victimization which is not accompanied by physical force or restraint but which is nonetheless psychologically intrusive, exploitive and traumatic. Sexual violence might be regarded as one of the most profound violations of human rights Jeong and Cha and is considered a public health problem Krug et al.
Child sexual abuse CSA can have short- and long-term physical and mental sequelae Paras et al. An association between exposure to CSA and the development of dental fear has been shown Willumsen ; Leeners et al.
