Dating violence can affect teenagers too

By Amy Norton

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - About 3 percent of 12- to 17-year-old girls are physically or sexually assaulted by a boyfriend or date, a U.S. study suggests.

In interviews with a nationally representative sample of U.S. teens, researchers found that 2.7 percent of girls and 0.6 percent of boys said they had been the victim of serious dating violence -- including physical abuse, sexual assault or being threatened with a weapon.

The findings offer some insight into the prevalence of the problem, as well as some of its consequences, according to lead researcher Kate B. Wolitzky-Taylor who is now at the University of Texas at Austin.