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Munchausen syndrome by proxy unmasked by nasal signs

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 June 2007

A. R. Magnay*
Affiliation:
Institute of Child Health, the University of Birmingham, UK
G. Debelle
Affiliation:
Department of Paediatrics, The Children's Hospital, Birmingham, UK.
D. W. Proops
Affiliation:
Department of Paediatric Otolaryngology, The Children's Hospital, Birmingham, UK.
I. W. Booth
Affiliation:
Institute of Child Health, the University of Birmingham, UK
*
Dr Andrew R. Magnay, M.A., M.B., B.Chir., M.R.C.P. (UK), Institute of Child Health, Nuffield Building, Francis Road, Ladywood, Birmingham, B16 8ET. UK.

Abstract

The protean manifestations of child abuse continue to cause diagnostic difficulty. Recent observations of the high mortality in victims of Munchausen syndrome by proxy, and their siblings, reinforce the need for early diagnosis and appropriate intervention. We report the nasal manifestations which unmasked Munchausen syndrome by proxy in an infant who presented with intestinal and peri-orifical signs masquerading as Crohn's disease. The possibility of Munchausen syndrome by proxy should be considered in an infant with persistent nasal excoriation presenting as part of an undiagnosed illness.

Type
Clinical Records
Copyright
Copyright © JLO (1984) Limited 1994

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