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Three Thousand Days of Pregnancy

A Case of Monosymptomatic Delusional Pseudocyesis Responding to Pimozide

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Karel W. De Pauw
Karel W. De Pauw*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, Doncaster Royal Infirmary, Armthorpe Road, Doncaster DN2 5LT; former Senior Registrar, Leicester General Hospital
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Extract

An unusual case of pseudocyesis of almost ten-year duration, characterised by a monosymptomatic hypochondriacal delusion and a selective response to pimozide is reported. The nosological status of the diagnosis, delusional (paranoid) disorder, is suggested to be a variety of the Kraepelinian concept of paranoia. The therapeutic pitfalls of relying on a phenomenological distinction between overvalued ideas and delusional beliefs are discussed.

Type
Brief Reports
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 157 , Issue 6 , December 1990 , pp. 924 - 928
Copyright
Copyright © The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

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