Abstract
Two cases of “Shared Psychotic Disorder” were diagnosed over a period of less than a year in a children’s psychiatric center. Shared Psychotic Disorder is one of the differential diagnoses that need to be entertained when evaluating a delusional patient. Including the patient’s family and/or significant others in the assessment increases the possibility of diagnosing Shared Psychotic Disorder. An eight-year-old girl was admitted after exhibiting psychotic behavior with paranoid delusions she shared with her mother. Specifically, she reported that “neighbors next door were repeatedly breaking into her house, pinning her down, raping her, and injecting her with I.V. drugs.” An eight-year-old boy also shared a paranoid delusional system with his mother. Both believed that the public school system targeted the boy, abusing him both physically and mentally in an effort to destroy him.
Recommended Citation
Abu-Salha, Mohammad Y. M.D.
(1998)
"Folie á Deux: Two Case Reports,"
Jefferson Journal of Psychiatry: Vol. 14:
Iss.
1, Article 3.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.29046/JJP.014.1.002
Available at:
https://jdc.jefferson.edu/jeffjpsychiatry/vol14/iss1/3