Child abuse: the physician's role in alleviating a growing problem.

Child abuse and neglect are prevalent in American society. In many cases, the abuse is perpetuated generationally.(1) Child maltreatment, abuse and victimization refer to the intentional assault of a child by a caretaker. This definition has been expanded to cover any action that undermines a child's development potential and is a significant expansion of the definition associated with the battered-child syndrome.(2,3)