Reabuse rates in a sample of children followed for 5 years after discharge from a child abuse inpatient assessment program.

Efforts to accurately measure rates of reabuse have been elusive because of problems in definition and methodology. The present study examines reabuse rates across a 5-year follow-up period in a sample of children assessed for child abuse (October 1986-October 1987). Participants consisted of 304 children (7 months-15 years of age), systematically selected from a population of 1,100 children consecutively admitted to a hospital-based, interdisciplinary, child abuse assessment unit. Reabuse was determined by matching sample names against information in a centralized reporting system. Reabuse was studied across demographic and socioeconomic variables, vulnerability days, initial and subsequent type(s) of abuse, and other considerations. At the end of the 61-72 month follow-up period, the sample had a 16.8% incidence of reabuse. The greatest risk of reabuse occurred during the first 2 years following an initial discharge diagnosis of maltreatment. Although no particular initial maltreatment diagnosis was a statistically significant predictor of the likelihood or type of reabuse, neglect was shown to be the most frequent type of reabuse. Children experiencing reabuse were more likely to reside in public housing/apartments, have unmarried and/or unemployed parent(s), and be Medicaid recipients. Opportunities for secondary prevention initiatives and future research are discussed.