Introduction:

Cutting is a nonsuicidal self-injurious behavior. Although this behavior is increasingly frequent in children under the age of 15, studies on its prevalence in the Colombian pediatric population have not yet been conducted.

Objective:

To describe the risk factors and the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of children under the age of 15 diagnosed with cutting and treated at the emergency service of a quaternary care hospital located in Bogotá D.C., Colombia.

Materials and methods:

Descriptive, observational, and cross-sectional study. The medical records of patients under 15 years of age with Z91.5, F32, F33, F99, F19, F41, F43, T742 and X60 ICD-10-CM medical diagnosis codes treated between 2011 and 2017 were reviewed to identify cases meeting the diagnosis criteria for cutting (nonsuicidal self-injury).

Results:

In total, 85 medical records of children aged 10-14 were included. Cutting prevalence in the sample was 0.15%, but in the psychiatric disorders subgroup it was 26.7%. A 3:1 female-to-male ratio was found. Out of the 85 children, 62% did not have a nuclear family (i.e., did not live with both parents), 30.6% showed a poor school performance, and 80% injured their forearms. Concerning their mental health, 22.3% reported their anxiety was reduced after injuring themselves, and 72.9% did not have suicidal thoughts. The most frequent risk factors were having a history of mental disorder (52.9%), having experienced psychological violence (25.8%), and, in the case of boys, using psychoactive substances (22.7%).

Conclusions:

The prevalence of cutting found here is lower than what has been reported for this population in other countries. Likewise, cutting was three times more common in girls, and having a history of mental disorders might increase the risk of developing this behavior. Although the characteristics described here will allow identifying easily this condition in Colombian children, it is necessary to conduct further studies to determine the effectiveness of therapies aimed at this population.

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