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Issues in the identification and long‐term management of Munchausen by Proxy Syndrome within a clinical infant service
Author(s) -
LyonsRuth Karlen,
Kaufman Margaret,
Masters Nina,
Wu Jenai
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
infant mental health journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.693
H-Index - 75
eISSN - 1097-0355
pISSN - 0163-9641
DOI - 10.1002/1097-0355(199124)12:4<309::aid-imhj2280120405>3.0.co;2-g
Subject(s) - munchausen syndrome , medicine , proxy (statistics) , child abuse , pediatrics , psychiatry , psychology , poison control , suicide prevention , medical emergency , machine learning , computer science
Munchausen by Proxy Syndrome is a version of Munchausen's Syndrome whereby a parent, usually the mother, simulates or fabricates disease in one or more of her children in order to seek medical attention. Because this disorder is usually identified in pediatric settings, current literature focuses on identification of the syndrome, with little discussion of treatment issues or management strategies other than confrontation of the parent and removal of the child from the home. With the increased availability of infant mental health services, infant clinicians are likely to be called on to evaluate and treat cases of this disorder. This paper reviews the Munchausen by Proxy literature for infant clinicians and describes the identification and long‐term management of one Munchausen by Proxy case within the context of an infant home‐visiting service. Pertinent issues that emerged included the difficulties inherent in documenting the mother's pathological behavior, the clinical tension between preventing flight from treatment but limiting harmful behavior, the need for a long‐term collaborative relationship with a designated pediatrician, and the importance of further education of protective service workers about this syndrome.