Munchausen Syndrome

Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy is a mental condition diagnosed in the perpetrator. The victim is used to attract attention to the perpetrator (by proxy) by proclaiming symptoms and illnesses that are factitious to get the attention of medical staff. Although most perpetrators are female, usually the mother of the victim, there are also cases where the perpetrator is not female and or not a parent. Although classified as a mental disorder, a caregiver who is found guilty of MSBP may be convicted and sentenced for the crime of abuse and even murder in some cases. Although the medical profession has in the past been slow to recognize the symptoms, further studies indicate that they are striving to be able to recognize the symptoms in this severe

In 1977 Meadow named another form of Munchausen syndrome. In this form, a caregiver would make up a factitious illness in their child so that the child would then be subjected to unnecessary treatments. Meadows called this form of Munchausen Syndrome, Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy. In this form of the syndrome, the caregiver could receive medical attention through their child to satisfy the need for attention for themselves. Some of the several symptoms that are most commonly reported are different forms of bleeding, seizures, depression, fevers and rashes. The view that is often taken is that the caregiver may have had loss and or trauma from a previous incident that has gone unresolved. Emotional triggers may be a motivation for abusers to seek out these types of behavior. These triggers may be happening at the time or may be memories of past events. Patnaik, S., Mishra, B. R., Mohanty, I., & Nayak, S. (2013). The caregivers of the victims of MSBP usually appear to be caring and responsible people. (Rosenberg,