7610, otherwise known as "Act for Stronger Deterrents and Special Protection against Child

Abuse, Exploitation, and Discrimination" defines a child and child abuse as follows: "Children" refers to
person below eighteen (18) years of age or those over but are unable to fully take care of themselves or
protect themselves from abuse, neglect, cruelty, exploitation or discrimination because of a physical or
mental disability or condition; "Child abuse" refers to the maltreatment, whether habitual or not, of the
child which includes any of the following: Psychological and physical abuse, neglect, cruelty, sexual
abuse and emotional maltreatment; Any act by deeds or words which debases, degrades or demeans
the intrinsic worth and dignity of a child as a human being; Unreasonable deprivation of his basic needs
for survival, such as food and shelter; or Failure to immediately give medical treatment to an injured
child resulting in serious impairment of his growth and development or in his permanent incapacity or
death. Child maltreatment is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as gall forms of physical
and/or emotional ill-treatment, sexual abuse, neglect or negligent treatment or commercial or other
exploitation, resulting in actual or potential harm to the child`s health, survival, development or dignity
in the context of a relationship of responsibility, trust or power" (WHO, 2006, p. Within thisdefinition,
five subtypes can be distinguished, namely, physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect and negligent
treatment, emotional abuse, and Physical abuse is defined as "the intentional use of physical force
against a child that results in—or has a high likelihood of resulting in—harm for the child`s health,
survival, development or dignity. This section is focused on physical abuse, while the next section will
focus on the sexual abuse of children.Indicators of Child Abuse physical child abuse usually involves
physical injuries perpetrated by a parent, a household or family member, or another person who has
permanent or temporary custody or responsibility for supervision of that child. Pediatricians and
emergency department physicians must maintain a high level of suspicion when children are presented
with injuries highly specific for abuse or when children have injuries not consistent with the history
provided. The physician must be aware of the many risk factors for abuse and must be able to identify
clues in the history that raise the suspicion for abuse (Lichenstein & Suggs, 2007).