Treatments
A number of treatments are available to victims of child abuse. However, children who experience childhood trauma do not heal from abuse easily. Trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy, first developed to treat sexually abused children, is now used for victims of any kind of trauma. It targets trauma-related symptoms in children including PTSD, clinical depression and anxiety. It also includes a component for non-offending parents. Several studies have found that sexually abused children undergoing TF-CBT improved more than children undergoing certain other therapies. Data on the effects of TF-CBT for children who experienced non-sexual abuse was not available as of 2006. The purpose of dealing with the thoughts and feelings associated with the trauma is to deal with nightmares, flashbacks and other intrusive experiences that might be spontaneously brought on by any number of discriminative stimuli in the environment or in the individuals brain. This would aid the individual in becoming less fearful of specific stimuli that would arouse debilitating fear, anger, sadness or other negative emotion. In other words, the individual would have some control or mastery over those emotions.Rational Cognitive Emotive Behavior Therapy is another available treatment and is intended to provide abused children and their adoptive parents with positive behavior change, corrective interpersonal skills, and greater control over themselves and their relationships.Parent–child interaction therapy was designed to improve the child-parent relationship following the experience of domestic violence. It targets trauma-related symptoms in infants, toddlers, and preschoolers, including PTSD, aggression, defiance, and anxiety.
It is supported by two studies of one sample.School-based programs have also been developed to treat children who are survivors of abuse. This approach teaches children, parents, teachers, and other school staff how to identify the signs of child maltreatment as well as skills that can be helpful in preventing child maltreatment.Other forms of treatment include group therapy, play therapy, and  art therapy. Each of these types of treatment can be used to better assist the client, depending on the form of abuse they have experienced. Play therapy and art therapy are ways to get children more comfortable with therapy by working on something that they enjoy (coloring, drawing, painting, etc.). The design of a childs artwork can be a symbolic representation of what they are feeling, relationships with friends or family, and more. Being able to discuss and analyze a childs artwork can allow a professional to get a better insight of the child.Interventions targeting the offending parents are rare. Parenting training can prevent child abuse in the short term, and help children with a range of emotional, conduct and behavioral challenges, but there is insufficient evidence about whether it has impact on parents who already abuse their children. Abuse-focused cognitive behavioral therapy may target offending parents, but most interventions exclusively target victims and non-offending parents. Prevalence
Child abuse is complex and difficult to study.