Child Sexual Abuse of Girls

Child sexual abuse is a common and devastating problem affecting as many as 15 to 30% of girls. Perpetrators of child sexual abuse are more likely to be male; most often someone known to the child. It is now well established that child sexual abuse is a non-specific risk factor for both internalizing and externalizing disorders in girls and adult women, and is associated with neurobiological dysregulation in both childhood and adulthood. …