Domestic violence--an emerging health issue.

The aim of this paper is to explain some of the aspects included in the concept of family violence, to summarize the principal theoretical models proposed to explain it, as well as to describe the principal syndromes included within the scope of the concept: battered woman, courtship violence, child-abuse, child sexual-abuse, child witnessing violence, sibling violence and elderly violence. Particular emphasis is put on the description of the effects that different types of family violence cause on the individuals' health.