Background: Corporal punishment has been banned in Sweden since 1979. Child abuse is known to exist in all cultures and social classes in our society. Therefore the nurse must be aware of this working with children.

Aim: The aim of this study was to describe how nurses' can identify signs and symptoms of child abuse.

Method: A literature review of ten articles containing six quantitative and four qualitative studies published between the years of 2000 and 2012. A content analysis was performed where similarities emerged in themes and subthemes.

Results: The findings were signs and symptoms which concerns physical, psychological and social behaviors seen in child abuse. Additional findings were; an insecurity and lack of knowledge among nurses working with children. Experienced nurses believed to be more confident than less experienced nurses in identifying abused children and adolescents. 

Conclusion: Nurses' ought to have a holistic and ethical approach towards evaluating child abuse. It's important to have in mind that child abuse appears in great variety in physical, physiological and social aspects. Nurses' expressed the need of clearer guidelines in how to identify child abuse and common risk factors.