Strangulation and Domestic Violence Awareness Month
Why Strangulation Occurs Since 1987, October has been declared Domestic Violence Awareness Month (DVAM) in order to raise awareness and connect individuals and organizations who work with this issue on a daily basis. This year, the theme is “We Are Resilient.” In the United States alone, an average of 20 people per minute are physically […]
The Many Implications of Asphyxiation
Death By Asphyxiation The Greek used the term asphyxia when referring to a stopping of the heart rate or pulse. When the body doesn’t get enough oxygen, its organs cannot function, either by inadequate delivery of the oxygen, or poor uptake or utilization of the oxygen by the body’s tissues and organs. This is sometimes […]
Munchausen’s: Criminal Implications
Munchausen’s Syndrome is considered a form of medical child abuse in terms of physical abuse and medical neglect. This type of abuse is considered to be pre-meditated. Medical providers are considered a mandatory reporting entity, but many do not recognize the syndrome or get “sucked into” the sympathy for the caregiver. “Even when fabricated illness […]
Munchausen’s: The Offender
What the Caregiver Might Do to Mimic Illness in the Child: Adding chemicals to the child’s urine or stool Withhold food so the child looks like they are anorexic Make up lab results to be abnormal Give the child drugs to make the child throw up or have diarrhea and abdominal pain Infect an intravenous […]
Munchausen’s: The Victim
According to the literature, boys and girls are equally victimized in Munchausen’s Syndrome, and 77% to 90% of the time, the perpetrator is the child’s biological mother. In addition, 29% of perpetrators have symptoms of Munchausen Syndrome themselves. What the Victim Might Look Like: Failure to thrive due to nutritional neglect Child has a history […]
Munchausen’s: Definition
Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy was first described in 1951 by a British physician, but it was not until 1977 that the condition was labeled “Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy” by pediatrician Roy Meadow. The syndrome was defined as, “a condition in which a parent or other caretaker persistently fabricates symptoms on behalf of another, causing that […]
