Caroline Koblenzer

Are You Confident of the Diagnosis? There are six common sets of circumstances under which a patient may create lesions on his or her own skin: 1) Patients with neurotic excoriations, 2) patients with delusional beliefs about the skin, 3) wrist cutters, 4) malingerers, 5) patients with Munchausen’s syndrome, 6) patients with dermatitis artefacta. The…

Are You Confident of the Diagnosis? A delusion is a false belief that is not consistent with the cultural standards or educational level of the individual, and that is unshakable in face of all evidence to the contrary. The patients whom we see in dermatology have “systematized” delusions. These, in contrast to “bizarre” delusions, are…

Are You Confident of the Diagnosis? The term neurotic excoriations (NE) refers to a condition in which the patient picks at his or her own skin, and freely acknowledges that he or she is creating the lesions. NE is not to be confused with dermatitis artefacta, in which the lesions appear mysteriously and the patient…