Presumption of sexual abuse in children and adolescents: vulnerability of pregnancy before 14 years.

OBJECTIVES

to investigate the presumption of sexual abuse through the records of live births with mothers up to 13 years of age.

METHODS

this is a quantitative study, with an ecological design, carried out in Maceió, with data from the Brazilian Live Birth Information System from 2009 to 2017, based on Law 12,015/2009, on sexual crimes against the vulnerable, applying the presumption of violence in children under 14 years old.

RESULTS

nine hundred fifty-three births of children with mothers aged 10 to 13 years were recorded; 1.3% were reported as victims of sexual abuse; 20.3% declared to be married or living in a stable relationship. Records were concentrated in 04 neighborhoods, Guaxuma, Benedito Bentes, Tabuleiro do Martins, and Jacintinho.

CONCLUSIONS

there was a prevalence of pregnancy and marriage in girls under 14 years of age and scarcity of reporting presumed sexual abuse by health professionals.