Patients with factitious disorder imposed on self (FDIS) seek medical care for deliberately falsified problems. Although a large amount of work has been published, the scientific literature lacks robust data on FDIS. The present study aimed to estimate the annual mean of in-hospital FDIS codings in France, describe the sociodemographic characteristics of subjects with FDIS, assess healthcare utilisation and medical nomadism, and describe the pathologies most frequently associated with FDIS.
Subjects with at least one coding of FDIS in French health insurance databases between January 1, 2009, and December 31, 2017 were included. Subjects younger than 18 years of age at the time of first coding were excluded from the study. Sociodemographic data of subjects and diagnoses associated with the first coding of FDIS were collected. Healthcare utilisation and medical nomadism were analysed descriptively from one year before to one year after the first FDIS coding.
2232 subjects were included, representing an average of 248 new in-hospital FDIS codings per year. The subjects included were 58.2% female. The mean age at diagnosis was 48.5 years. In the year following the first coding of FDIS, 1268 subjects (56.8%) were re-hospitalised at least once, including 159 (7.1%) with at least one new coding for FDIS. From one year before to one year after the first coding of FDIS, 66% of the subjects included had received at least one prescription for benzodiazepines, 58.3% for antidepressants, and 42.6% for antipsychotics.
Our findings bring new data working towards a better understanding of FDIS. The consumption of psychotropic drugs is particularly frequent in patients with FDIS.

A 61-year-old woman with an unknown psychiatric history presented with mutism, stupor, negativism, and withdrawn behavior. She was admitted to the psychiatric unit for what appeared to be catatonia. Medical records were not readily available. A comprehensive evaluation did not uncover any medical etiology. Lorazepam was ineffective at consistently reversing her catatonic symptoms. During week three of hospitalization, she was given olanzapine with subsequent improvement in her negativism. Several physicians believed her catatonic symptoms were feigned given multiple episodes of spontaneous purposeful movement when she was not under the direct supervision of staff. There is minimal literature on distinguishing catatonia and factitious disorder. This distinction is crucial because these diagnoses require very different treatments, and the iatrogenic complications related to the treatment of catatonia with high-dose benzodiazepines and electroconvulsive therapy are significant. Rapid access to electronic health records can facilitate treatment for patients who cannot provide a medical history, especially when factitious disorder is included in the differential diagnosis.