Delusional parasitosis (DP) is a mental disorder in which individuals have a persistent belief that they are infested with living or nonliving pathogens such as parasites, insects, or bugs, when no such infestation is present. They usually report tactile hallucinations known as formication, a sensation resembling insects crawling on or under the skin. Morgellons is considered to be a subtype of this condition, in which individuals have sores that they believe contain harmful fibers.[1]
Delusional parasitosis is classified as a delusional disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM5). The cause is unknown, but is thought to be related to excess dopamine in the brain. Delusional parasitosis is diagnosed when the delusion is the only symptom of psychosis and the delusion—that cannot be better explained by another condition—has lasted a month or longer. Few individuals with the condition willingly accept treatment, because they do not recognize the illness as a delusion. Antipsychotic medications offer a potential cure, while cognitive behavioral therapy and antidepressants can be used to help alleviate symptoms.[1]
The condition is rare, and is observed twice as often in women as men. The average age of people with the disorder is 57. An alternative name, Ekbom's syndrome, honors the neurologist Karl-Axel Ekbom, who published seminal accounts of the disease in 1937 and 1938.[1]
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and 27 Related for: Delusional parasitosis information
In primary delusionalparasitosis, the delusions are the only manifestation of a psychiatric disorder. Secondary delusionalparasitosis occurs when another...
such as delusional infestation". Morgellons is poorly understood but the general medical consensus is that it is a form of delusionalparasitosis in which...
diseased, abnormal or changed. A specific example of this delusion is delusionalparasitosis: Delusion in which one feels infested with insects, bacteria, mites...
epidermoptidae)" about her own symptoms led to a retrospective diagnosis of delusionalparasitosis. Jay R Traver was born in August 1894 and raised in Willoughby,...
accompanied by hallucinations that support the delusional beliefs. Delusionalparasitosis with formication ("cocaine bugs") is also a fairly common symptom...
numerous studies showing pimozide can be used successfully to treat delusionalparasitosis and traditionally was the drug of choice. However, newer medications...
2013.10.011. PMID 24144776. "DelusionalParasitosis", The Bohart Museum of Entomology, 2005, webpage: UCDavis-delusional[permanent dead link]. Morton...
matchbox. 50–80% of patients with delusionalparasitosis present with this sign. People with delusionalparasitosis can damage their skin by attempting...
insects on or under the skin. Such patients have what is known as delusionalparasitosis. They believe their skin is inhabited by, or under attack by, small...
the bottom of the stone head may stem from Dalí's experience with delusionalparasitosis. The disease was not first published about until 1937, however Dalí...
infection by springtails may indicate a neurological problem, such as delusionalparasitosis, a psychological rather than entomological problem. Researchers...
Finnegans Wake. They commonly feature in the psychiatric disorder delusionalparasitosis. A louse was one of the early subjects of microscopy, appearing...
Olanzapine, sold under the brand name Zyprexa among others, is an atypical antipsychotic primarily used to treat schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. For...
anxiety, stress, and sleep difficulties. Development of refractory delusionalparasitosis is possible, as a person develops an overwhelming obsession with...
with Scully, who explains that it is likely a case of drug-induced delusionalparasitosis, though Mulder finds a cockroach on the underside of a piece of...
theories Drinker's paradox, a theorem of classical predicate logic Delusionalparasitosis, in which individuals incorrectly believe they are infested with...
Invaders from Mars. Matchbox sign, a similar phenomenon related to delusionalparasitosis. Rogerson, Peter. "Fairyland's Hunters, Part One". #46 – June 1993...
tremens. Psychiatry portal Alcohol dementia Alcohol detoxification Delusionalparasitosis Excited delirium On the wagon Healy, David (3 December 2008). Psychiatric...
Desilets, David John (August 2019). "Two Cases of Gastrointestinal DelusionalParasitosis Presenting as Folie á Deux". ACG Case Reports Journal. 6 (8): e00183...
A Letter to a Friend (written 1656; published posthumously in 1690), by Sir Thomas Browne, the 17th century philosopher and physician, is a medical treatise...
better support its mission”. A point of confusion is that RLS and delusionalparasitosis are entirely different conditions that have both been called "Ekbom...
Ekbom syndrome may refer to: Delusionalparasitosis Wittmaack-Ekbom syndrome, a synonym of restless legs syndrome This disambiguation page lists articles...
"delusional intuition". Other types of primary delusions include delusional mood (or atmosphere), delusional (apophanous) perception and delusional memories...
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