OBJECTIVE:

to describe the cases of violence against children reported in Ribeirão Preto-SP, Brazil.

METHODS:

this was a descriptive study using data provided by the Violence and Accidents Surveillance System (VIVA), of the Municipal Health Department of Ribeirão Preto-SP, Brazil, from 2006 to 2008.

RESULTS:

a total of 498 cases of violence against children (0-9 years old) were reported in the period, with an increase in the number of notifications, from 112 in 2006 to 197 in 2008; 79.3% of the notifications came from the Health area; and most children were female (56.4%), aged between two and five years old (over 60%); most aggressors were male (53.6%) and the father figure stood out (22.7%); physical aggressions were the most frequent (59.2%) and the most frequent place of the occurrence was the family household (75.5%).

CONCLUSION:

most victims were female, abused by men, mostly fathers and other family members, at the family household.

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