Child abuse deaths vary greatly by region

Child abuse deaths over the past 11 years were significantly higher in Osaka Prefecture and the northern part of the Kanto region than other parts of the country, according to a recent study. Rates of fatal child abuse differed widely among prefectures and only Tokushima and Kochi prefectures had no such cases, according to the findings by a graduate school team studying criminal psychiatry at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. The study also found that during the 11 years, the incident rate of child abuse deaths tripled. Osaka Prefecture had the most fatal child abuse cases, 41, followed by 26 in Saitama Prefecture, 20 in Kanagawa Prefecture and 17 in Tokyo. The research team concluded that measures to prevent child abuse need to be carefully designed to meet local conditions.

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