Munchausen syndrome with pulmonary manifestations.
Three patients with Munchausen's syndrome were seen with symptoms suggesting serious pulmonary disease. One patient, a student respiratory therapist, simulated respiratory failure which resulted in a tracheostomy and prolonged ventilator support. The second, a licensed practical nurse, feigned a lupus erythematosis syndrome, with alarming, simulated hemoptysis produced by slashing the posterior tongue with a razor blade. The third patient, a nurse, underwent exhaustive testing at three hospitals for profuse "hemoptysis" until she admitted she obtained the blood from her arm by venesection.
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006469:Hemoptysis / Q000175:diagnosis; D006801:Humans; D009110:Munchausen Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011655:Pulmonary Embolism / Q000175:diagnosis; D012131:Respiratory Insufficiency / Q000175:diagnosis