Abstract
#### The bottom line Delusional infestation (previously also known as delusional parasitosis or Ekbom’s syndrome) is a rare disorder, but it commonly poses disproportionate practical problems to healthcare systems.1 It...
Highlights
Hawliau Cyffredinol / General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights
Delusional infestation is a diagnosis of exclusion
Consider delusional infestation in patients who present with a fixed belief that they are infested with living or non-living organisms in the absence of medical evidence for this
Summary
Peter Lepping consultant psychiatrist; honorary professor 1, Markus Huber consultant psychiatrist 2, Roland W Freudenmann consultant psychiatrist; associate professor 3. Delusional infestation (previously known as delusional parasitosis or Ekbom’s syndrome) is a rare disorder, but it commonly poses disproportionate practical problems to healthcare systems.[1] It is characterised by a patient’s fixed belief that his or her skin, body, or immediate environment is infested by small, living (or less often inanimate) pathogens despite the lack of any medical evidence for this.[1] Delusional infestation is neither a single disease nor a single diagnostic entity. The classic form, primary delusional infestation, develops without any known cause or underling illness and meets criteria for a persistent delusional disorder (ICD-10 (international classification of diseases, 10th revision)) or delusional disorder somatic type (DSM-5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition)). This supports the hypothesis that the delusional beliefs are the result of disturbed basic learning processes and of errors of probabilistic reasoning (favouring the unlikely explanation over the likely).[4]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
