Research supports that very young children are the most frequent victims of child fatalities. For instance, a child whose death is officially recorded as pneumonia may, in fact, have contracted the illness as a result of being poorly clothed, fed, bedded or medically neglected. Thus, many child abuse experts feel that abuse or neglect may well be the underlying cause in many cases where the cause is medically described. However, many child prostitutes and youngsters involved in alcohol and drug abuse are victims of physical or sexual abuse and neglect at home. Thus, adolescents may have more options than younger children, but they are not necessarily positive options.
Adolescent abuse remains a serious problem that deserves attention and action.
The gathering of accurate information and statistics is recognized as a problem at most levels of government. Efforts have been made to develop systems that will reflect more accurately the scope and degree of child abuse and neglect. The number of suspected child abuse cases reported and investigated in California has steadily risen over the years as a result of the Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act and the increased attention paid to the problem by professionals and the public. In 1999, the California Department of Social Services received 540,577 reports of child abuse incidents. Of these, 26.0 percent were for physical abuse, 40.0 percent for general neglect, 13.5 percent for sexual abuse, 8.0 percent for caretaker absence, 3.1 percent for severe neglect, 9.1 percent for emotional abuse and .3 percent for exploitation.