The disease with the interesting name actually goes back to the famous role model Karl Friedrich Hieronymus Freiherr von Münchhausen (1720-1797), also called the “Liar Baron”.
Disease pattern
Sufferers of severe personality disorder try to get attention by pretending to be ill. They are concerned with medical treatment, preferably hospitalization. Unpleasant or painful examinations or operations are also not shied away from in this context.
Since they acquire a lot of medical knowledge in the course of their illness, they are very convincing when describing their symptoms. Often they also inflict injuries on themselves. The treating physicians often only notice very late that it is a mental illness. Especially since those affected often leave the facility when they are threatened with discovery, in order to set the medical apparatus in motion again at another clinic.
Munchausen by proxy syndrome
This condition is a variant of the syndrome described above. Parents bring their children to the doctor with feigned illnesses and demand treatment. This is a special form of child abuse, because it is not uncommon for children to be taught injuries beforehand or given drugs that produce specific symptoms.
