Symptoms of factitious disorder encompass simulating or generating illness or injury, or amplifying symptoms or impairment with the intent to mislead others. Those afflicted with the disorder meticulously veil their deceit, often making it arduous to discern that their symptoms form part of a severe mental health ailment. They perpetuate their ruse even without gaining visible advantages or rewards, and regardless of objective evidence contradicting their assertions.
Indications and manifestations of factitious disorder may involve:
- Artful and persuasive presentation of medical or psychological issues
- Comprehensive grasp of medical terminology and illnesses
- Ambiguous or inconsistent symptomatology
- Conditions deteriorating without apparent cause
- Lack of anticipated response to standard treatments
- Consulting numerous doctors or hospitals, potentially employing an alias
- Unwillingness to permit doctors to converse with family, friends, or other healthcare practitioners
- Frequent hospitalizations
- Keenness for recurrent testing or hazardous procedures
- Multiple surgical scars or indications of numerous interventions
- Sparse visitors during hospital stays
- Engagement in disputes with medical personnel
Factitious Disorder Imposed on Another (formerly known as Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy) refers to the fabrication of physical or psychological illness symptoms in another person, or the deliberate infliction of injury or disease, with the intent to deceive others.
Individuals with this disorder present another person as unwell, injured, or having difficulties functioning, often asserting that medical attention is required. Typically, this involves a parent causing harm to a child. This form of abuse poses significant risks, subjecting the child to potential harm or unnecessary medical interventions.
Mechanisms of Feigning Illness in Factitious Disorder
Due to their adeptness at simulating symptoms and conditions, or even inducing actual harm upon themselves, individuals with factitious disorder can confound healthcare professionals and loved ones in distinguishing genuine illnesses from fabricated ones.
People with this disorder employ various methods to feign illness or induce harm, including:
- Exaggeration of existing symptoms: Even if a legitimate medical or psychological condition is present, they may amplify symptoms to appear more debilitated or unwell than is accurate.
- Fabrication of medical history: They might furnish loved ones, healthcare providers, or support groups with a fictitious medical history, falsely claiming past illnesses like cancer or AIDS. Alternatively, they may manipulate medical records to suggest a history of illness.
- Simulation of symptoms: This may encompass feigning symptoms like abdominal pain, seizures, or fainting.
- Self-inflicted harm: Individuals may intentionally make themselves sick, such as injecting themselves with harmful substances like bacteria, milk, gasoline, or feces. They may inflict physical injuries, cuts, or burns on themselves. In some cases, they may mimic diseases by taking medications like blood thinners or diabetes drugs. Deliberate interference with wound healing, such as reopening or infecting wounds, is also a possibility.
- Tampering: They may manipulate medical instruments to skew results, like artificially elevating thermometer readings. Laboratory tests may be tampered with, such as contaminating urine samples with blood or other substances.
