Background: Nowadays, sexual assault is one of the most widespread issues with many bad impacts on physical, psychological, and social health. Estimation of the prevalence of sexual assault has great importance in establishing the measures effective in controlling this crime. This study aimed to evaluate the features of sexual assault in Dakahlia Governorate, Egypt.
Methods: This was a descriptive retrospective study of sexual assault cases. Data were obtained from the records of the Forensic Institute of the Ministry of Justice, Dakahlia Governorate, Egypt. The data obtained included the victim's age, sex, residence, educational and marital status in addition to the victim's mentality, features of the sexual assault, and examination of cases.
Results: The mean age of victims was 14.31 ± 9.81, most were females 97 (67.4%) and most in urban areas 93 (64.6%). Most cases reported a single assault 133 (92.4%), and many victims 121 (84.0%) showed no relationship with the assailants. The most reported type of assault was rape 73 (50.75%). Only (16.5%) of females showed abrasions in the anogenital region, and (35.1%) showed rupture hymen. Regarding males, the external examination showed that only (14.9%) of cases showed abrasions in the anogenital region, and (25.5%) of cases showed anal fissures; otherwise, all other cases were normal. External examination and injuries were common among young age groups less than 18 years.
Conclusions: The most affected population by sexual assault was young females living in urban areas and unmarried. Delayed presentation for examination is common and usually affects the interpretation of data due to a lack of evidence of injuries.