 |
|
Testing the Psychogenic Vomiting DiagnosisFour Pediatric Patients
Joseph Gonzalez-Heydrich, MD;
John Alan Kerner, Jr, MD;
Hans Steiner, MD
Am J Dis Child. 1991;145(8):913-916.
Abstract
• We treated four patients with chronic vomiting during childhood in whom a tentative diagnosis of psychogenic vomiting was made after an extensive evaluation. In each case, the diagnosis was reconsidered during the course of treatment, as observations about the patients and their response to interventions accumulated. In three instances, these observations did not fit those expected if the diagnosis of psychogenic vomiting was correct. This led to a reexamination of the organic evaluation and the discovery of an undiagnosed organic contribution to the vomiting. In the fourth patient, gastric emptying studies confirmed that there was a strong psychological contribution to the vomiting, and helped to more carefully define this contribution. Family and individual psychotherapy and treatment were aided by the greater clarity in diagnosis.
(AJDC. 1991;145:913-916)
Author Affiliations
From the Departments of Psychiatry and Neurology (Dr Gonzalez-Heydrich), Pediatrics (Dr Kerner), and Psychiatry, Division of Child Psychiatry (Dr Steiner), Stanford (Calif) University Medical Center. Dr Gonzalez-Heydrich is now in private practices in Los Angeles.
Footnotes
Accepted for publication October 8, 1990.
Reprint requests to Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford, 725 Welch Rd, Palo Alto, CA 94304 (Dr Steiner).
 CiteULike  Connotea  Del.icio.us  Digg  Reddit  Technorati  Twitter
What's this?
THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES
Self-induced Vomiting as a Presentation of Abdominal Mass
Vaughan and Knight
Pediatrics 1997;99:731-731.
FULL TEXT
Ganglioneuroblastoma Masquerading as Chronic Vomiting
Mojtahed et al.
CLIN PEDIATR 1995;34:110-113.
|
