Sexual violence against adolescents in Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil

Objective  To analyze the situation of sexual violence against adolescents.

Methods  Cross-sectional study with spatial analysis, covering 172 reporting forms, from January 2009 to January 2013, in Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul. Data were grouped by neighborhood for spatial analysis. The statistical analysis was descriptive.

Results  Adolescents in situations of violence were mostly girls (94.8%) and white (37.8%). Domestic violence prevailed (51.7%) and with one perpetrator (66.9%). Pregnancy (8.7%) was one of the consequences. The cases were evenly distributed in the city without a preferential spatial pattern and regardless of social background.

Conclusions  Despite the underreporting of sexual violence cases, the frequency and the individual and collective consequences of this are serious enough to make it a public health issue.

Sexual violence; Pediatric nursing; Adolescent health; Public health nursing; Spatial analysis; Millennium Development Goals