Clinical vampirism: blending myth and reality.
Vampires arouse strong popular interest and attract large print and film audiences. Their influence is also notable in clinical vampirism, a rare condition described in the forensic literature covering some of humanity's most shocking behaviors. Definitions of vampirism involve aspects of necrophilia, sadism, cannibalism, and a fascination with blood. Its relationships with established diagnostic categories, particularly schizophrenia and psychopathy, are also examined and illustrated by the presentation of a "modern" vampire. As myth and reality are disentangled, clinical vampirism reveals the complex mother-child dyad's blood ties running amok.
Jaffé
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PD
University of Geneva, Switzerland.
DiCataldo
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D000328:Adult; D001769:Blood; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009229:Mythology; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D011574:Psychoanalytic Theory; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D020018:Sexual Dysfunctions, Psychological / Q000523:psychology*