Dermatitis Artefacta

Dermatitis artefacta, also known as factitial dermatitis, is a disease in which self-inflicted skin injury is utilized to fulfill a conscious or unconscious urge to playthe sick part. It is more frequent in women and individuals who have anunderlying mental illness or are under external stress. The diagnosis is one ofexclusion, and it is sometimes difficult to establish since patients seldomacknowledge to playing a part in the development of their lesions. Treatment canbe difficult, and treatment should rely on a multidisciplinary team comprised ofdermatology and psychiatrist.

Psychiatric comorbidities in dermatitis artefacta: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Dermatitis artefacta, also known as factitious or factitial dermatitis, is a rare and difficult-to-treat condition characterized by self-inflicted skin lesions. Despite the well-documented psychological disturbances that characterize this condition, little is known about the relative frequency of specific psychiatric disorders in this patient group. The current systematic review was undertaken to address this gap in our knowledge and was conducted in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. The PubMed and Scopus databases were searched using the terms “dermatitis artefacta,” “factitious dermatitis,” and “factitial dermatitis” in combination with “psychiatry,” “psychiatric diagnosis,” “psychiatric disorder,” “mental illness,” “depression,” and “anxiety.” After screening a total of 215 citations, a total of 11 papers were included in the final review. All the included studies were of low to very low quality as per the GRADE guidelines, and there was substantial heterogeneity among them (I2 = 50.4). It was observed that 46.2% of patients (95% CI: 35.4–57.4%) with dermatitis artefacta had a comorbid psychiatric disorder, with the most common diagnoses being depression, somatoform disorders, anxiety disorders, substance use disorder, and intellectual disability. About 20.1% of patients refused a psychiatric evaluation, while 40.9% reported a significant stressful life event. These results suggest that a significant proportion of patients with dermatitis artefacta suffer from psychiatric disorders, which may be related to their self-infliction of lesions either biologically or psychologically. Treatment of these disorders may lead to a partial or complete improvement in their dermatological condition. A sensitive, non-confrontational approach is essential when evaluating these patients to minimize the chances of refusal and improve patient compliance.

Dermatitis Artefacta

Dermatitis artefacta, also known as factitial dermatitis, is a disease in which self-inflicted skin injury is utilized to fulfill a conscious or unconscious urge to play the sick part. It is more frequent in women and individuals who have an underlying mental illness or are under external stress. The diagnosis is one of exclusion, and it is sometimes difficult to establish since patients seldom acknowledge to playing a part in the development of their lesions. Treatment can be difficult, and treatment should rely on a multidisciplinary team comprised of dermatology and psychiatrist.

Dermatitis artefacta

Dermatitis artefacta is a psychocutaneous illness that afects especially women, adolescents and patients with an underlying psychiatric illness or personality disorder (especially borderline), as well as patients with external stress. Patients infict injuries in various ways, most often mechanically. The clinical signs are characteristic and are usually combined with psychological disorders. In the diferential diagnosis organic causes of dermatitis must be ruled out. The therapy should be carried out by a psychodermatological team to treat both the skin lesions and the patient’s psyche. We report on a patient with dermatitis artefacta who produced skin lesions using dye-stuf because of psychological stress.

Sexual violence as a possible trigger in a case of dermatitis artefacta

Dermatitis artefacta (DA) is an uncommon diagnosis made by exclusion. Here, it is depicted a case of a woman that started to mutilate herself with a heated spoon, whenever she felt sexual desire. This self-inflicted aggression begun few months after she was sexually abused.