Munchausen syndrome

American  

[muhn-chou-zuhn sin-drohm, muhnch-hou-zuhn] / ˈmʌnˌtʃaʊ zən ˌsɪn droʊm, ˈmʌntʃˌhaʊ zən /

noun

Psychiatry.

1. a factitious disorder in which otherwise healthy individuals seek to hospitalize themselves with feigned or self-induced pathology in order to receive surgical or other medical treatment.

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Etymology

Origin of Munchausen syndrome

1950–55; named after Baron von Münchhausen ( def. ), whose fictionalized accounts of his own experiences suggest symptoms of the disorder

Example Sentences

Her mother Dee Dee Blanchard lived with Munchausen syndrome by proxy, a psychological disorder in which parents or caregivers seek sympathy through the exaggerated or made-up illnesses of their children.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 28, 2023

Her mother had Munchausen syndrome by proxy, a psychological disorder in which parents or caregivers seek sympathy through the exaggerated or made-up illnesses of their children, said her trial attorney, Michael Stanfield.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 27, 2023

Hospital staff suspected that her mother was exaggerating the symptoms and demanding high doses of ketamine and sedatives as part of Munchausen syndrome by proxy, according to the Daily Mail.

From Washington Times • Nov. 9, 2023

Prof Marc Feldman is one of the world's most renowned experts on factitious disorders like Munchausen syndrome.

From BBC • May 7, 2023

But all the while, she was perfectly healthy — the victim of an extreme case, it seems, of Munchausen syndrome by proxy.

From Salon • Apr. 13, 2019