[Munchausen syndrome in a child]

L Li1, F N Zhao2, X G Sun3

  • 1Department of Ophthalmology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710061, China.

A six-and-a-half-year-old girl with white secretions in her eyes for 2 weeks was treated in the Ophthalmology Department of the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University after ineffective treatment in several hospitals. The patient refused to communicate with the doctor and receive detailed examination. Only conjunctival congestion was found in both eyes. According to the photos and specimens of white secretions from both eyes provided by the parents of the patient, the diagnosis was conjunctivitis and conjunctival foreign bodies. With the doctor's reminding, the parents did close observation and good communication. The child finally admitted that she had put tissue fragments into her eyes in order to attract the parents' attention. Munchausen syndrome was diagnosed by a psychiatrist. After symptomatic treatment and improvement of family environment, the patient's condition improved. (Chin J Ophthalmol, 2021, 57: 621-623).

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