The development of a sexual abuse severity score: characteristics of childhood sexual abuse associated with trauma symptomatology, somatization, and alcohol abuse.
Childhood sexual abuse (CSA) is common and is associated with both mental and physical health problems in adulthood. Using data from an age- and sex-stratified population survey of 600 Olmsted County, Minnesota, residents, a Sexual Abuse Severity Score was developed. The abuse characteristics of 156 CSA respondents were associated with self-reported trauma, somatization, and alcohol use. Characteristics included age of first sexual abuse, more than one perpetrator, degree of coercion, severity of abuse (i.e., attempted intercourse is more severe than fondling), and the number of occurrences. This is one of the few reports to develop a risk summary that quantifies the severity of CSA.
Zink
Therese
T
Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, University of Minnesota, MMC 81, 420 Delaware Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA. zink0003@umn.edu
Klesges
Lisa
L
Stevens
Susanna
S
Decker
Paul
P
D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002650:Child Abuse, Sexual / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010555:Personality Inventory; D015995:Prevalence; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult