OBJECTIVE: to estimate the under-reporting of domestic violence at a health service for adolescents (aged 10 - 19 years) in Recife, Brazil, comparing prevalences based on medical records and active investigation of cases in the past year and characterizing the victims and risk factors associated with life events. METHODS: a cross-sectional study was carried out with 333 adolescents attended between February and May 2004, using semi-structured questionnaires covering variables relating to the location and type of abuse, age, sex, occupation, level of education, religion, drug-use, marital status, household income, and family type. Pearson's chi-square test and logistic regression were used to assess the degree of association, using the Epi-info 6.04 and SPSS software packages. RESULTS: of the adolescents interviewed, 41.4% reported abuse although only 1.8% had this registered in medical records. Physical and psychological abuse were reported by 66.7% for each, and sexual violence by 17.7%. A third of the adolescents reported repeated abuse since childhood (20%). Fathers and step-fathers were the main perpetrators of abuse against both sexes, followed by intimate partners. Factors associate with abuse were: unemployment, low level of education and druguse (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: although the prevalence of abuse in the adolescents interviewed was high, it is poorly registered in medical records, suggesting that it is substantially under-reported. The factors identified as being associ ated with abuse reflect generally unsatisfactory living conditions.
Adolescent health; Domestic violence; Epidemiology; Risk factors
