Medical child abuse
Alerts and Notices
Synopsis
Clinical presentation can vary widely as affected individuals can appear as injured or ill from any number of diseases, but commonly these patients are high utilizers of the health care system who have symptoms that are not well explained by a known medical condition. Children affected by Munchausen syndrome by proxy can present with fabricated stories of medical illness or inflicted medical illness by their caregiver, and they are consequentially subject to extensive medical testing and treatment.
Many patients will improve during hospital observation but worsen after discharge when they return to their abusive environment.
Related topics: child abuse, Munchausen syndrome
Codes
ICD10CM:F68.A – Factitious disorder imposed on another
SNOMEDCT:
95637005 – Munchausen syndrome by proxy
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Diagnostic Pearls
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Differential Diagnosis & Pitfalls
- Delusional disorder
- Malingering
- Munchausen syndrome
- Heavy metal poisoning
- Wilson disease
- Hemochromatosis
- Familial Mediterranean fever
- Hemophilia
- Epilepsy
- Inherited or acquired immune deficiency syndromes
- Mitochondrial disorders
- Substance use disorders (see addiction disorders)
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References
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Last Reviewed:07/28/2020
Last Updated:07/19/2021
Last Updated:07/19/2021