TREATMENTS &
RESEARCH

Search the
latest
treatment
information
here.

Dr. Huntley's
Diagnosis
Checklist

Have a symptom?
See what questions
a doctor would ask.
 

Factitious syndromes



Introduction: Factitious syndromes

Factitious disorders refer to any medical condition whereby a person feigns symptoms or otherwise fakes their illness in order to get some benefit. In factitious disorders, the person seeks attention or wants to be in the role of the patient. In cases where symptoms are feigned to get an economic benefit (e.g. insurance fraud, getting paid time off work, etc.), the disorder is more correctly called malingering. Somatoform disorders or psychosomatic symptoms are also different from factitious syndromes, because in these cases the person is not aware that their mind is causing the symptoms and is not conciously doing so with intent. Also different is hypochondriasis because the person does not want to be ill. One well-known name for factitious disorders is Munchhausen's syndrome, and particularly well-publicized is the very rare Munchhausen's syndrome by proxy where a mother intentionally makes her child sick in order to get attention.

Symptoms of Factitious syndromes

Read more about symptoms of Factitious syndromes

Home Diagnostic Testing

Home medical testing related to Factitious syndromes:

Wrongly Diagnosed with Factitious syndromes?

Misdiagnosis and Factitious syndromes

Undiagnosed stroke leads to misdiagnosed aphasia: BBC News UK reported on a man who had been institutionalized and treated for mental illness because he suffered...read more »

Dementia may be a drug interaction: A common scenario in aged care is for a patient to show mental decline to dementia. Whereas this can, of course, occur due to various medical...read more »

ADHD under-diagnosed in adults: Although the over-diagnoses of ADHD in children is a well-known controversy, the reverse side related to adults. Some adults can remain...read more »

Bipolar disorder misdiagosed as various conditions by primary physicians: Bipolar disorder (manic-depressive disorder) often fails to be diagnosed correctly by primary care physicians. Many patients with bipolar seek help from their...read more »

Eating disorders under-diagnosed in men: The typical patient with an eating disorder is female. The result is that men with eating disorders often fail to be diagnosed or have a delayed diagnosis. See misdiagnosis of...read more »

Depression undiagnosed in teenagers: Serious bouts of depression can be undiagnosed in teenagers. The "normal" moodiness of teenagers can cause severe medical depression to be overlooked. See ...read more »

Undiagnosed anxiety disorders related to depression: Patients with depression (see symptoms of depression) may also have undiagnosed anxiety disorders (see symptoms of anxiety disorders). Failure to diagnose these anxiety disorders...read more »

Read more about Misdiagnosis and Factitious syndromes

Videos for Factitious syndromes

Your Rights as a Patient

Your Rights as a PatientWhenever you go to a hospital or clinic for a major procedure or diagnostic test, one of the many forms you are given to sign is an "informed...

Responsible Sexual Behavior

Responsible Sexual BehaviorSexual contact can sometimes result in problems. An unwanted pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases may be some of those consequences. But by...

 

Your Health and Your Insurance

Your Health and Your InsuranceHealth insurance is important to everyone, especially people with chronic conditions like Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. Tune in to...

Poor Sleep's Effect on Health

Poor Sleep's Effect on HealthSleep is necessary to feel refreshed, but now we know sleep actually impacts the way the body functions. Sleeping poorly can affect how often you get...

 
See full list of 4 related videos

Patient Surveys for Factitious syndromes

Statistics for Factitious syndromes

Types of Factitious syndromes

  • Munchhausen syndrome
  • Munchhausen syndrome by proxy
  • Factitious insulin
  • Factitious diabetic pill ingestion
  • Thyrotoxicosis factitia

See full list of 6 Types of Factitious syndromes

Stories from Users Related to Factitious syndromes

Related forums and stories:

User Interactive Forums

Read about other experiences, ask a question about Factitious syndromes, or answer someone else's question, on our message boards:

Definitions of Factitious syndromes:

A factitious disorder characterized by habitual presentation for hospital treatment of an apparent acute illness, the patient giving a plausible and dramatic history, all of which is false. - (Source - Diseases Database)


 » Next page: What is Factitious syndromes?

Medical Tools & Articles:


Next articles:

Tools & Services:

Medical Articles:

Forums & Message Boards

Major Disease Research

Research
symptoms, treatments,
and misdiagnosis
of major diseases.

Multiple Symptom
Checker

Check one
or many
symptoms
 
By using this site you agree to our Terms of Use. Information provided on this site is for informational purposes only; it is not intended as a substitute for advice from your own medical team. The information on this site is not to be used for diagnosing or treating any health concerns you may have - please contact your physician or health care professional for all your medical needs. Please see our Terms of Use.