Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy: A Clinical Vignette.

Munchausen syndrome by proxy is the act of one person fabricating or inducing an illness in another to meet his or her own emotional needs through the treatment process. The diagnosis is poorly understood and controversial. We report here the case of a 6-year-old boy who presented with possible pneumonia, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea and whose mother was suspected of Munchausen syndrome by proxy.