Epidemiological profile of older people who are victims of repeated abuse

Objective: To describe the occurrence of repeated abuse against older people in Brazil between 2011 and 2021. Methods: We conducted a descriptive retrospective cross-sectional study using secondary data from the Brazilian Ministry of Health’s Notifiable Diseases Information System. Cases of repeated abuse against people aged 60 years or over were included, while cases of self-directed violence were excluded. Data were analyzed using Tabwin. Results: Most victims were women (68.5%, 23.3 cases per 100 000 people), aged 60 to 69 years (47.7%), but the highest prevalence coefficient was found in those over 80 years of age (27.6 per 100 000 people), living in the Southeast region (49.0%), but the highest coefficient was found in the South (31.4 per 100 000 people), self-identified as White (53.3%), living with a partner (51.3%), and with incomplete elementary school education (45.8%). The most common form of violence was physical (35.6%, 10.1 cases per 100 000 people), perpetrated by men (57.9%) who acted alone (63.3%) and were known to the victim (92.5%), with no suspected alcohol use (45.3%). An increasing trend was observed over the study period (331.9%). Conclusion: The increasing prevalence of repeated elder abuse over the 11-year study period points to failures in the protection system. This reinforces the importance of ongoing monitoring of this issue.