Factitious Disorder Signs & Symptoms

Conditions & Diseases: Psychological & Mental Health

Factitious Disorder

Factitious Disorder Signs and Symptoms

Although, factitious disorder is a condition hard to recognize and diagnose, especially due to the natural tendency among physicians to believe the symptoms described by patients, it is even more difficult when the patient works in the healthcare field. The doctors have to rule out any physical or mental disorder before considering a factitious disorder diagnosis. However, there is a significant number of signs and factors that can help the medical staff in considering the possibility of a factitious disease. These include:

The patient presents a long and dramatic medical record with numerous admissions at different hospitals usually in several cities.
The individual's history is vague, inconsistent, and usually described to impress the listener.
The patient describes unclear symptoms that don't fit in any diagnostic category, that are uncontrollable, and can become more severe or even change when addressed with treatment.
The patient has an unusual, extensive knowledge of medical information and uses advanced terminology when talking about their symptoms.
The patient is eager to undergo painful or uncomfortable medical tests and procedures.
The patient may complain of a complication or new symptoms when the initial laboratory tests are negative.
The patient may exhibit certain symptoms or the symptoms are exagerated when they know they are being observed.
The patient relapses despite improvement.
The patient has lot of scars from previous surgeries or procedures or evidence of self-inflicted wounds or injuries.
The patient visits the emergency rooms during holidays or late Friday evening when experienced medical staff are less likely to be present and obtaining old medical records is difficult.
When hospitalized, the patient is visited by few or no family members despite their claims of being an important person.
The patient can be reluctant when the medical staff wants to talk with family, friends, or doctors that previously treated them.
The patient usually tries to control the situation, seeks attention, displays a hostile, angry, and destructive behavior.
The patient is abusing substances particularly prescription pain-killer and sedatives.

Article by Alina Morrow,
MS Psychology
OmniMedicalSearch.com