Kleptomania and potential exacerbating factors: a review and case report

Kleptomania is an impulse control disorder that can cause significant impairment and serious consequences. Often, the condition is kept secret by the patient, and usually help is sought only when confronted by the legal consequences of the impulsive behaviors. Historically, kleptomania has been viewed from a psychodynamic perspective, and the mainstay of treatment has been psychotherapy. Recently, attempts to explain kleptomania within a neuropsychiatric paradigm have highlighted the possible links between mood disorders, addictive behaviors, and brain injury with kleptomania. These associations with kleptomania can be extrapolated to pharmacological strategies that can potentially help in treating kleptomania. A case of kleptomania, which was potentially exacerbated by multiple factors, will be reviewed. Treatment modalities used in this case, including the use of the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale as a surrogate marker to gauge response to treatment, will be discussed.