Munchausen syndrome by proxy: an experience from Nigeria.

We report here on a child who over a period of 8 years was admitted several times to hospitals in different states of Nigeria based on fictitious illnesses described by his mother. The child had various unnecessary, expensive and invasive investigations followed by treatment with harmful drugs. The evolution of this case of Munchausen syndrome by proxy is described in order to alert paediatricians in developing countries to a problem which is described frequently in more affluent societies. We believe this is the first such case to be recorded in West Africa.