Mass psychogenic illness (epidemic sociogenic attacks) in a village in Lebanon

Mass psychogenic illness (epidemic sociogenic attacks/mass hysteria) refers to a rapid spread of well-described signs and symptoms affecting members of a group. It might be difficult to differentiate at first from illnesses due to infections, intoxications or "bio-terrorism." We investigated such an occurrence in a small village in Lebanon chronically under threat of war. A 16-year-old single female, school student, was referred to Saint George Hospital University Medical Center, Beirut, for attacks of shortness of breath, muscle cramps, tremors and dizziness, for several days. She was referred because she was the first of eight cases from the same village to have similar symptoms. In parallel to an inpatient multidisciplinary evaluation and treatment, meetings were held with the crisis group comprising members of the hospital Psychiatry and Psychology Department, a public health representative of the Ministry of Health of Lebanon, physicians who were taking care of the other cases and a psychologist working in the area where these cases were declared. The diagnosis of mass psychogenic illness (epidemic sociogenic attacks) was reached. A common strategy was adopted in an effort to control the epidemic. Several explanations had been put forward initially by the community : bioterrorism, noxious fumes and "bad spirits." At the time of writing this report--nine months later--, the epidemic, which had abated within six weeks, was still inactive.