Child abuse and dentists

A questionnaire on the recognition and reporting of child abuse was sent to a random sample of Dutch dental practitioners (N = 250). The response rate was 54%. Eighty-six percent had never seen a case of child abuse. The percentage of dentists reporting a (suspicious) case of child abuse (6%) was lower than the percentage of dentists detecting a case of suspicious child abuse (14%). The most important reason for this discrepancy seems to be a lack of knowledge and/or skills to properly identify child abuse. More professional education about child abuse is desired.