title: Victimization, aggression, and visits to the school nurse for somatic complaints, illnesses, and physical injuries.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine how involvement in aggressor-victim interactions is linked to somatic complaints, illnesses, and physical injuries among elementary school-aged children.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study was composed of a school-based sample of 590 children in grades 3 through 5. Independent sources were used to assess victimization (self-report) and aggression (peer report) in the fall semester. School nursing logs for the entire school year were collected in May and coded for the number of times each child presented with a somatic complaint, illness, or injury.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Both aggression and victimization were significantly related to all 3 reasons for nurse visits, controlling for demographic variables. Higher levels of aggression and victimization each were independently associated with more frequent visits to the school nurse for somatic complaints, illnesses, and injuries. A significant victimization-times-aggression interaction was found for illnesses, with nonaggressive victimized children presenting most frequently for illness visits.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Involvement in aggressor-victim interactions, as either aggressor, victim, or both, is associated with more frequent health complaints, based on school nursing logs. Prevention, early identification, and treatment of problems with victimization and aggression may have important health implications for children.
authors.affiliation: Clinical Child Psychology Program, University of Kansas, 1000 Sunnyside Ave, 66045. vernberg@ku.edu
authors.forename: Eric M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Vernberg
authors.forename: Timothy D
authors.initials: TD
authors.lastname: Nelson
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Fonagy
authors.forename: Stuart W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Twemlow
mesh_terms: D000374:Aggression / Q000523:psychology*; D002648:Child; D002669:Child Welfare; D019548:Crime Victims / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D010379:Peer Group; D012044:Regression Analysis; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012494:Sampling Studies; D012573:School Nursing / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D013334:Students / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014505:Urban Population; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology