STRIAE IN ADOLESCENTS MISTAKEN FOR PHYSICAL ABUSE

Physiological striae are common in adolescence, occurring in the lumba r and gluteal regions, the upper thighs, breast, lower abdomen, and ba ck. The lesions may be mistaken for nonaccidental injury, that is, phy sical abuse. We present four cases of adolescents with lesions thought to be due to physical abuse. Three of these cases were revealed durin g a school screening program for scoliosis; of the 2600 adolescents sc reened, aged 12 to 16 years, 168 were found to have striae. One case w as found by a family physician when a young boy presented with low bac k pain. Since striae may be mistakenly ascribed to physical abuse, it is important for family physicians, nurses, and pediatricians to be fa miliar with this benign condition.