ABSTRACT
PHYSICAL ABUSE IS serious. It starts at one end of the continuum withminor injuries or bruising, and ends at the other with injuries that can prove fatal. Physical abuse is thought to be responsible for the death of approximately 200 children a year in the UK. It can be the product of a single violent act or an accumulation of regular assaults and beatings. Its dangers relate closely to age: the younger the child, the more at risk they are from physical harm. A baby who has been shaken, for example, can suffer severe and irreversible damage; even a small bruise in an infant may be a predictor of more severe or possibly fatal abuse.
