Maternal Maltreatment Facialabuse May 2026

Maternal Maltreatment: Facial Abuse — Overview, Effects, and Response

Note: "Facial abuse" here refers to physical maltreatment directed at an infant’s or child's face (slaps, punches, pinching, forced feeding that injures the face/mouth, pulling hair/ears, or other actions causing facial injury), and includes related acts of degrading or shaming gestures focused on the face (e.g., forced exposure, humiliation) when relevant to psychological harm.

• Acute: bleeding, infection, dental loss, fractures, airway compromise (rare but possible), scarring.
• Chronic: malocclusion, altered facial growth, permanent dental damage, sensory or motor deficits from nerve injury.

: The head and neck are among the most common areas for physical abuse injuries because of a child's small stature and proximity to an adult's hands. Common Signs maternal maltreatment facialabuse

School Counselors/Teachers: Mandated reporters who can assist in initiating an investigation. : The head and neck are among the