OBJECTIVES: To analyze the recurrence of child abuse in the municipality of Curitiba - Paraná and to understand the phenomenon from the perspective of gender. METHODS: A study using a quantitative approach of the descriptive exploratory type. Among the 338 notifications of violence against children aged zero to 9 years of age by the Network for the Protection of Children and Adolescents of this city, with final notification in 2009, 300 cases were analyzed for being repeat offenders. RESULTS: All the cases were domestic violence and the most frequent recidivism was neglect, with a mother as the primary aggressor. Sexual violence appeared more among girls, with recurrent cases of the same type or preceded by negligence. The manifestation of recidivist violence against children presented itself superimposed with a tendency to deteriorate with the evolution of cases. CONCLUSION: Violence against children is determined by relationships of Power, determined by the categories of gender and generation, which produce inequities potentiating the family vulnerability in relation to violence. A critical view about this issue may indicate measures to overcome it, with regard to assistance and prevention of its occurrence and recidivism in both the health sector and other sectors.
Child abuse; sexual; Mandatory reporting; Domestic violence; Recurrence
