| Author,year/Type of Study | Main Results and Country | Why did they not report? |
|---|---|---|
| Ramos-Gómez et al., 1998 [55] I |
16% suspected at least one case of abuse/neglect in the 5 years before the study. USA |
Of the surveyed professionals that did not report a suspected case of CA, 71% had never seen a case of child abuse or neglect; 14% did not report due to lack of an adequate history; 6% due to a lack of knowledge about the problem of child abuse and neglect and of the role of the healthcare professional in reporting it; 3% out of concern that reporting may have more negative than positive consequences; 1% because of the impact it could have on their clinical practice; 1% due to a lack of time; and 1% because they did not believe the case would be investigated. |
| John et al., 1999 [41] I |
28% of those surveyed suspected cases of CA. Australia |
86% did not report due to an uncertain diagnosis; 81% because of concern about the consequences for the child; 26% due to patient confidentiality reasons; and 18% out of fear of litigation. |
| Kilpatrick et al., 1999 [51] II |
58% of the pediatric dentists suspected some case of abuse, versus 24% of the general dentists. Australia |
75-80% did not report due to patient confidentiality reasons; 43-38% did not do so because of concern about the consequences for the child. |
| Love et al., 2001 [42] II |
81% of those surveyed suspected some CA. USA |
NA |
| Cairns et al., 2005 [53] I |
29% of the dentists suspected some CA in the course of their professional life. Scotland |
Only 8% of the suspicions were reported; 11% were concerned about a negative impact on their practice; 34% feared family violence towards the child; 31% feared violence directed against them; and 48% feared litigation. |
| Thomas et al., 2006 [44] I |
21% of those surveyed suspected some CA. USA |
NA |
| Manea et al., 2007 [49] I |
16% suspected cases of CA. Italy |
NA |
| Harris et al., 2009 [9] II |
Two out of every three of those surveyed suspected some case of CA. United Kingdom |
NA |
| Al-Habsi et al., 2009 [45] I |
15% of those surveyed suspected some CA in the last 6 months. United Kingdom |
86% did not report due to an uncertain diagnosis; 68% due to a lack of procedures; 66% out of fear of violence to the child; 28% out of fear of litigation; 26% out of fear of family violence against them; and 10% out of fear of the impact on their practice. |
| Uldum et al., 2010 [54] II |
13.9% of the dentists suspected some case of child abuse/neglect in the last 6 months. Denmark |
80% did not report due to an uncertain diagnosis. Other reasons were fear of violence to the child; a lack of knowledge of the procedures for reporting; and concern about the consequences for the child in the event of intervention by the authorities. |
| Tornavoi et al., 2011 [46] I |
62% of those surveyed did not consider themselves qualified to diagnose cases of CA. Brazil |
NA |
| Azevedo et al., 2012 [47] II |
14.3% of those surveyed suspected cases of CA. Brazil |
NA |
| Sonbol et al., 2012 [48] II |
49.6% suspected cases of CA. Jordan |
43% failed to report because of concern about the consequences for the child; 41% did not have a clear diagnosis and did not know where to report. |
| Harris et al., 2013 [50] I |
37% of those surveyed suspected abuse/neglect of their pediatric patients. Scotland |
Only 11% referred a case. Of the unreported cases, 74% were due to a lack of diagnostic certainty. |
| Al-Dabaan et al., 2014 [14] II |
59% of those surveyed suspected cases of CA. Saudi Arabia |
19.7% did not wish to get involved. |
| Van Dam et al., 2015 [52] I |
24% of the general dentists suspected CA in the last year. The Netherlands |
NA |
| Al-Hajeri et al., 2018 [13] II |
39% of those surveyed suspected cases of CA. Males showed greater suspicion than females.United Arab Emirates | 54.9% did not report due to a lack of diagnostic certainty; 59.6% because of possible family violence; and 60.2% out of a lack of knowledge of how or where to report. |