Adverse chilhood whered experiences among adult population of bengaluru city

Objectives: Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) affects people's health and wellbeing .Majority of studies on ACEs are carried out in western part of the world and very few studies have estimated the prevalence of various forms of childhood abuse in India. Thus, the aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of Adverse Childhood Experiences among Adult Population of Bengaluru City. Study Design: A cross sectional descriptive survey using modified version of ACE International Questionnaire (ACE IQ) was carried out to estimate the prevalence of various forms of childhood maltreatment. Methods: Total samples of 2020 adults between 18-35 years of age were interviewed from various zones of Bengaluru City using stratified random sampling technique. The data collected was subjected to statistical analysis. Results: The results highlighted that 41% of the subjects have undergone physical neglect, 84% reported to have experienced emotional and physical abuse and 40% of the subjects had experienced sexual abuse in childhood, which was equally distributed irrespective of gender and socio economic status. Conclusion: The prevalence rate of physical and emotional abuse and neglect was higher in our study followed by child sexual abuse and all forms of ACE showed equal distribution between both the genders and among various socioeconomic groups of the population studied. It indicates that every individual is vulnerable and not all wounds heal with time. Dental Professionals as primary health care providers should step up and help protect our people, whether they’re young or old. Pediatric Dentists can use their position as trusted resources for children to identify children at risk, increasing the chance that these adverse situations might be identified early enough to be remediated.