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CAPT. EVERETT R. RHOADES, MC; ROBERT A. TOLAND, Jr., M.S.W.

AMA Arch Intern Med. 1959;104(3):427-429.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

The term "Munchausen's syndrome" was applied by Asher¹ to describe a type of bizarre behavior, manifested by recurrent episodes of apparently feigned organic illness or factitious bleeding often associated with multiple surgical scars upon the abdomen, an evasive manner, and a fantastic personal history replete with amazing adventures and extraordinary achievements. Patients with this behavior have been called "peregrinating problem patients" by Chapman ² because they travel from hospital to hospital causing consternation to the staff. Relatively little has been learned about the syndrome since Asher's report in 1951, and there is a notable lack of published data on possible psychodynamic factors. This is apparently a result of the recalcitrant nature of these patients.

The present report describes a patient who displayed the characteristics of Munchausen's syndrome and whose life history provided a basis for an understanding of possible causative factors.

Report of Case

The patient was a 34-year-old . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

Author Affiliations
U. S. A. F.; Bryan, Texas

Resident in Medicine, University Hospitals, Oklahoma City (Capt. Rhoades), and Director, Brazos County Youth Development Service (Mr. Toland).

Footnotes
Submitted for publication Nov. 14, 1958.

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