Galway Bay fm newsroom – Three children who attended a child sexual abuse unit in Galway last year were just one year old.
The average age of the 73 children seen at the Ballybrit-based centre during 2015 was seven years old.
The most common age for a child presenting for examination at the Child and Adolescent Sexual Assault Treatment Service was four, and the oldest child was 16.
The CASATS unit is the only 24-hour centre of its kind in Ireland, and two-thirds of those attending last year were female.
Most were referred by Gardaí.
Patients came from Galway, Clare, Donegal, Limerick, Mayo, Roscommon, Westmeath, Offaly, Laois and Longford.
According to the Irish Times, the director of the centre says three specialised 24-hour centres are required in central locations, so children do not have to travel long distances following a traumatic experience.