Epidemiology
Given the wide diversity of presentation and the deception inherent in the diagnosis, accurately estimating the prevalence of this diagnosis is difficult, so most data have been derived from case series, referral patterns in specialised settings, and extrapolation from laboratory data.[4] A review of psychiatric consultations in a tertiary care setting found about 1% of referrals received a diagnosis of factitious disorder.[5] Using an entirely different approach to estimate frequency, researchers examined specimens submitted by patients as kidney stones and found that 3.5% were obviously non-physiological.[6] Common varieties of factitious disorder seem to be more frequent in women, people with comorbid personality disorders, unmarried people, and in people with greater than usual exposure to health care (either employment in a healthcare field or as the child of a healthcare professional). The Munchausen syndrome subtype seems to be more common in single men.[4]
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